


The Cases of London

by Shellsan



Category: Ghost Hunt
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-06
Updated: 2016-01-18
Packaged: 2018-02-24 08:19:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 44,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2574590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shellsan/pseuds/Shellsan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Naru and Lin ask for the gangs help on a case in London (based after he left with Genes body) and whats this? Mai's going to study under professor Davis with Yasu?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: Yeah… so I am officially guilty of starting wayyy too many stories at once…**

**Mai: Shellsan is very sorry but it annoys her to have a story there and not posted so…**

**Naru: Idiot**

**Me: Yeah, yeah I know Naru. But meh… SCREW THE WORLD**

**Mai: She means to say that she doesn’t really care anymore and that she is working on her other stories as we speak**

**Me: Thank-you Mai**

**Naru: Shellsan doesn’t own ghost hunt because if she did it would still be on book 3**

**Me: HEY!**

_Mai stood in darkness as she looked around, not really expecting to find much. After Naru left, Gene didn’t really visit her anymore but she knew for a fact he hadn’t passed on. If he had, she would have known about it. She had always had a connection with Gene. He was like the older brother she had never had. It was the same with Naru, whether he realised it or not. In fact, Mai had a theory that it was thanks to Naru that her powers awoke._

_Sighing when it was definite that today wouldn’t be the next time she saw the troublesome twin. Succumbing to fate she turned to look at the scene that was beginning to form, breaking through the never-ending darkness._

_She was glad it wasn’t a first person dream because they were always the worst._

_Mai observed as the scene morphed into a large mansion. The walls old and run-down and it had some rose vines growing up the side with some moss giving it a majestic feel. A large glistening lake was near-by and from the looks of the oranges and pinks that painted the sky, it was late afternoon._

_A shrill scream shook Mai out of her current awed state. She watched as a woman was hit to the ground. “How dare you embarrass me in front of my family?! I told you never to speak unless spoken to” the man bellowed._

_Tears fell from the woman’s eyes. “I only told the truth!” she cried, “I refuse to allow my child to grow up under the conditions you give me.”_

_Sneering, the man pulled her up roughly. “What I gave you is what a worthless slut like you deserves.”_

_Defiantly, the woman shook her head spitting towards him, “what you gave me was no more than what a dog requires. I am a human being and I don’t care what you say, I will give my child the life I never received” she hissed._

_In that instance, the man broke, throwing her to the ground. “Oh the child will grow up but she won’t be living a much better life then you. Females are merely there to re-produce, a host for a child. Nothing more”_

_Mai gritted her teeth at the comment. She knew that she couldn’t do anything about the remarks but regardless she found the need to restrain herself. “It’s already happened”, she told herself until she felt that she could handle it. Turning back to the ‘screen’ she continued to watch the scene play out._

_Despite the position she was is, the woman only laughed, “if anything, females are the superior beings” she spoke. It seemed as though she was going to say more but he wouldn’t allow it. Aiming a punch directly towards her throat, he stopped any words she may have wanted to say._

_He was furious, “The only reason you live now is because if you were to die, so would the child that grows inside your stomach. However, if you continue to defy me, I will make sure that the child you so dearly wish to give a good life finds itself in pain through-out the time it lives.”_

_The man’s words sent shivers down Mai spine as she covered her mouth in horror, her image reflecting the very essence that was the woman’s face. Nodding the woman felt herself placed onto the ground._

_“Good” he spoke, dragging her into the mansion that would seem to be their house._

_As the scene changed, Mai felt time skip forward like a chilling wind. Voices surrounded her all at once, the sound of a new-born baby, the resounding of hits and slaps, screams of anguish and fury. One thing in particular stood out to Mai. The scream of that single word. “Mum!”_

_It wasn’t hard to tell what had happened as Mai stood, watching people in black shed fake tears as a show towards the loss of the mother of children simply for show. The grave stone was simple and read two words, “Elizabeth Wadleigh”_

Mai woke up in a start. The dream it’s self might not have been too much but the simple fact that because a woman had the ability to speak against a man got her killed, in front of her daughters eyes was enough to have her rushing towards the bathroom. Heaving whatever food she had left in her stomach, Mai was suddenly aware of the fact that sheens of sweat covered her face and the cold feeling of her body.

Sighing, she got up and closed the door to her bathroom, locking it to be sure. Turning on the shower, she stepped under the warm, cascade of water. Mai closed her eyes, attempted to forget those screams but to no avail, they continued to ring through her mind like a song on repeat, playing over and over again without a stop button.

Deeming herself clean she stepped out, wrapping a towel around her body and moved towards her closet.

Pulling out a knee-length black skirt and blue shirt, she got changed quickly. Looking at the time Mai realised that it was nearly time for work.

With the help of the others, Mai had managed to start up a small café that sold tea and sweets. Bou-san, Ayako and the rest had all chipped in to get the business up and running and now Mai was quite popular. Of course she was also under a lot of stress.

After Naru left, Mai had to find another job to support herself. Ayako and Bou-san had attempted to adopt her but she wasn’t having any of it. Mai loved them, she really did, but they could never replace the parents that she held dear in her heart.

Grabbing her purse, keys, jacket and phone, Mai left her apartment, locking the door behind her. It was only 7 o’clock on a Saturday morning but the streets were already buzzing as Mai made her way down a few blocks and ended up at a small corner café with the words, “Little Delights” written in delicate calligraphy above it.

Grinning, Mai unlocked the door to the café. She needed to get things set up to open in a couple hours. Moving quickly, she walked into the kitchen and began to make a few batches of assorted biscuits and some cake.

Her store was mainly a tea and sweets store but they also sold small sandwiches, toasties and croissants.

It was due to open in about an hour when she pulled out the first few batches of cookies. Quickly, Mai set them out to cool and started to make the chocolate muffins and the croissants. While she waited for them to cook, she wiped down the tables, setting the chairs down as she went before wiping down the counter, to remove any dust that had accumulated.

Hearing the timer go off Mai walked back into the kitchen and grabbed the croissants, placing them on the bench with the cookies.

Just as she was about to grab a jar to put the cookies in, she heard the bell on the door go off. “Jou-chan?” Mai heard Bou-san call from outside.

“In the kitchen!” she shouted, choosing to go back to what she was doing, grabbing a jar then moving back over to the biscuits and carefully tipping them into the jar.

Footsteps sounded as she heard Bou-san and –most likely- the others enter. Turning around she blinked when noticed that it _wasn’t_ the others with Bou-san.

“Guess who I found on our way here?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: Hey Everyone!**

**Mai: She has a new chapter already. You should all be proud**

**Naru: What? For actually getting something productive done?**

**Mai: Naru that was mean!**

**Me: No mai, It’s true. I have barely done anything at all and I have tons I should and should be doing *sigh***

**Mai: Fine. Oh yeah, Shellsan doesn’t own Ghost Hunt**

**Me: Enjoy~**

“Lin, Naru?” Mai asked, subtly pinching herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming.

Naru and Lin both nodded.

“I thought you guys were in England?” she inquired, turning back to what she was doing.

“BSPR recently got a rather difficult case request. My father proposed that I ask my old team if they would like to play a part in it” Naru explained as he watched her work.

Mai really hadn’t changed much over the years. Her hair had grown out slightly and she had developed more noticeable curves but for the most part, she was the same. At least from what he could tell.

Mai nodded as she placed the croissants on a serving tray. “So then what are you doing here? Why not just call?” she asked.

“We’re here on business for the next few days so we thought we would ask everyone while we were. Takigawa was the one who picked us up from the airport and suggested we come here because everyone meets up here.”

Sighing, Mai turned around glancing at Lin and Naru, “that’s fine and all and I can’t blame you or anything because you didn’t know. But _you”_ she stated giving a certain monk a pointed look, “are well aware that I have a café to run.”

Said man looked at her sheepishly. “Well you know, it’s not like you’re going to be going anywhere you weren’t already planning on going… and Michelle can take care of the shop” Bou-san gulped.

Rolling her eyes, she exhaled slowly to stop herself from yelling at the elder. “Bou-san, I suggest you take Naru and Lin outside, sit down and wait for the others while I finish setting up before I open in half an hour.”

For a moment, Bou-san thought of talking back but one look at Mai clearly said that it was not a question, but a demand.

Nodding, the monk left the kitchen, Naru and Lin following after him.

Once they were gone, Mai allowed herself to sigh in relief while the lights around her flickered.

 _‘Damn it Naru. Why couldn’t you have waited until I was ready before you spoke to me?’_ Mai wondered, breathing shallowly while leaning on the counter. It took all of her being not to collapse into tears. She had tried to get over the man, she really had. But nothing would work; no matter what she tried she couldn’t let him go.

His words from years ago still rung in her head. She held no malice towards him, only sadness and the wish that she couldn’t have been there to show him that he wasn’t a replacement for Gene.

Getting a hold of herself, Mai stood up, breathing back to normal. The lights stopped flickering and the room was back to how it once was.

She moved around the kitchen getting the last of the things read before placing them on trays and carrying them out to the counters. Carefully she placed them in the display case and dusted her hands off.

Happy with how the shop looked, she checked the time and saw that she didn’t need to open for another ten minutes. Walking out from behind the counters, Mai heard the bell go off and turned to see the others come in one by one.

“Morning” she said to the gang.

Ayako smiled giving Mai a hug “Morning. How are you?” she questioned.

Mai rolled her eyes, “as fine as ever”.

Nodding in approval, Ayako pulled away from the hug.

This was repeated with both John and Masako.

Yasu however, could not stand being so dull and proceed to appear out of no-where jumping on her. Mai groaned as she felt the wind knocked out of her slightly as she struggled to keep her balance.

“Yasu!” she cried out exasperated, “It’s too early in the morning for this”.

He simply laughed. “It’s never too early to hug my dear Mai-chan!” he said before noticing Bou-san sitting at the table with Naru and Lin.

“And to what do we owe he pleasure of those gentlemen?” he inquired curiously.

Sighing Mai grumbled about annoying best friends and it being _seriously_ too early in the morning for this kind of thing.

It was also at this moment that the rest of them noticed the two extra men who had been conversing with Bou-san until they came in.

Getting off of the still grumpy Mai, Yasu proceeded to drag her over to the table.

“Mai did you know that Lin and Naru are sitting at a table with _my_ beloved?” he demanded, pretending to be jealous as he placed his arms around Bou-san neck ‘protectively’.

The monk groaned at him, trying to un-wrap his arms from around his neck.

“Seriously man, stop it. You’re creeping me out.”

Placing a hand to his heart, Yasu feigned hurt, going over to Mai and dramatically pretending to cry on her shoulder before pouting when Mai didn’t play along –much to the relief of Bou-san.

“Awww Mai how could you leave me hanging” Yasu complained earning himself a whack on the head as Ayako had enough of his shenanigans.

Turning to the amused pair she raised a questioning eyebrow. “So to what _do_ we owe the pleasure?” Ayako asked, mimicking Yasu’s earlier question and effectively drawing attention towards the pair.

Masako and John looked over curiously, also wondering why they were here.

“Before all of that, who wants tea?” Mai inquired in advance of the conversation that would surely take place.

A chorus of “yes please” re-sounded the room apart from Lin who simply gave a curt nod of agreement.

Quickly, the girl left the room and began brewing the tea for the gang of people waiting for her. While waiting for the water to boil, she checked the time.

“Damn” she muttered noticing that once this batch of tea was done she would have to open up.

As soon as the tea boiled, Mai let it steep before taking it out to everyone else. It seemed like Naru had just finished explaining what was going on as approached the table.

“Here’s your tea guys. Feel free to sit around but I have work to do” she stated.

Yasu pouted, moving to slink an arm around her shoulder, “Oh come one, can’t you just open up a _little_ late for us?”

Rolling her eyes she gave him a firm look, “I’m not closing my business up for an extra amount of time because of some unexpected company. This is why we inform people when we are going to be visiting. It’s common courtesy.”

Turning she gave a disapproving look at Lin and Naru before moving away from Yasu and changing the sign on the door from ‘closed’ to ‘open’.

~TiMe SkIp BeCaUsE nO oNe WaNtS tO hEaR aBoUt MaI’s BoRiNg WoRk DaY~

It had surprised Mai when the others had stuck around throughout the whole time she was working, presumably to figure things out about how their trip to England was going to work.

Cleaning off her hands, she made her way over to the table which everyone had been occupying all day.

“So what have you guys been talking about?” she asked, pulling up a chair and collapsing onto it.

“Deciding who’s going to go with Naru for the case in England.” John responded, “We just need to know if you’re going to come.”

“I don’t know… I have a lot of things I need to get done and this shop is my responsibility” Mai reasoned looking around at the others slightly unsure of what to do.

Yasu pushed up his glasses causing them to glint playfully. “But Mai-chan, it’ll be like leaving early. It’s not like its long until we’ll be going to England anyway.”

The girl shot him a glare huffing in annoyance clearly not wanting to disclose such information.

Naru raised an eyebrow at this. “You’re coming to England?” he questioned.

“Well that’s where Cambridge is” she retorted.

Naru and Lin both stared at her in shock.

“You’re going to Cambridge?” Lin queried.

Yasu gave a smirk as he watched her turn away blushing. Mai didn’t intend on them finding out about this anytime soon. She knew that there was a chance she would see them once in England but this was not part of her plans.

“That’s right, both Yasu and Mai and attending Cambridge next semester” Ayako informed, obviously proud about how far Mai had come.

Naru however smirked at the new knowledge, “So you finally grew some brain cells”.

“You stupid JERK!” she shouted, taking the bait.

“Your insults haven’t changed so I wonder if you really did get smarter” he pondered evidently trying to see how many rises he could get out of her. It had been about year after all.

**“Would you feel better if I insulted you in English then you damn narcissist?”**

Naru blinked in shock at the unexpected change in language.

 **“When did you learn to speak English?”** he inquired. Last time he saw her she could barely say hello but  right now she was speaking in fluent, not to mention perfect, English.

Mai scoffed, **“I’m going to _Cambridge,_ in _London_ , where they speak _English_. How am I supposed to learn anything if I can’t speak the language?”**

Across the table Bou-san was beginning to get annoyed though, unable to keep up with the conversation seeing as he and was the worst of all of them on the subject with Ayako knowing enough to say greet but not enough to withhold a conversation.

Everyone else was having no difficulties what-so-ever keeping up. It was a necessity for Masako to know English for business purposes, John’s first language was Australian English, Naru was brought up in England, Lin had English as his second language, Japanese being his third and finally Yasu was also going to attend Cambridge meaning he was well aware of how to speak English too.

“Would you speak in Japanese for crying out loud!”

**Me: And so that is it for the new chapter. What did you guys think?**

**Mai: Please leave a review in the box below!**

**Naru: Saying how much it sucks**

**Me: Hey! Just because I don’t do anything productive doesn’t mean you can criticise my work. It’s 4:30 in the _morning_!**

**Mai: I think I’ll go take them away before they destroy something… *hears crash***

**Yasu: TOO LATE!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: Here’s the next chapter and it hasn’t even been a week!**

**Naru: It’s been nearly a week though**

**Me: But it _hasn’t_ been a week**

**Naru:…**

**Mai: Naru just got owned! And if Shellsan owned ghost hunt then that would of happened much more often. But it almost never happened so I guess that means she doesn’t! *grumbles***

**Me: Enjoy! And go and check out Iloveanimex’s story A Walk To The Lake (** [ **https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10232929/1/A-walk-to-the-lake** ](https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10232929/1/A-walk-to-the-lake) **) because it’s amazing and needs to be shared with all of the ghost hunt fandom!**

“Would you speak in Japanese for crying out loud!” the monk exclaimed from across the table when his frustration got the better of him.

Mai laughed at him.

“Sorry Bou-san, I forgot you can’t speak the language.”

Said man scowled, “No need to rub it in” he mumbled pouting.

Rolling her eyes, Mai dragged herself out of her seat and gave the pouting man a hug.

The action seemed to spark some curiosity in the mind of Lin.

“Takigawa, did you adopt Taniyama-san?”  He asked.

 It seemed like a natural thing to ask considering how they act around each other and the bond that the two seemed to have shared since the very beginning. Naru too seemed to want the answer to said inquiry and turned his head to the pair trying not to be jealous of their current position.

“I tried but she was stubborn and when she finally got irritated with my asking she threatened me.”

Mai groaned turning away and hiding behind the monks shoulder. It most definitely hadn’t been her best moment of the past year.

“You threatened him?” Naru asked rather intrigued.

Mai refused to look at them, too embarrassed about what had happened.

“Oh yeah, if I remember correctly she said and I quote “If you ask me to become your adopted daughter one more time then I will steal Ayako’s purse and hit you so many times that you won’t be able to think straight for a week”” Ayako teased.

Masako snickered from across the table. Up until now she had been sitting there quietly conversing with John but naturally she didn’t pass up the chance to see Mai get embarrassed.

“In my defence it was the thirty second time he had asked, I hadn’t slept the night before _and_ I had just finished a busy day at work” she mumbled from behind Bou-san’s shoulder.

They looked at her slightly taken aback. “Were you counting or something?”

Mai turned back to them -her blush now only a small pink tint- escaping from what was originally a simple hug and had turned into a battle of trying to breathe while the elder attempted to squeeze the daylights out of her. Catching her breath she grinned at them shrugging while moving back to her own seat.

“But back on the initial topic, are you coming or not?” Naru demanded getting slightly annoyed.

Sighing Mai nodded in agreement.

“Let’s try to keep you out of trouble for this one” John remarked smiling slightly. His words were meant to be positive but sparked remembrance in Ayako.

“Wait, are you even able to go?” she inquired, “have your injuries healed yet?”

Mai scowled, “My injuries are no longer existent. They finished healing a few days ago. I keep trying to tell you that but you’re not listening” she grumbled.

Ayako rolled her eyes, “I’m just worried about you. How many times have you gotten hurt this month alone?”

The question was meant to be rhetorical so Mai ignored it but a certain man who had been gone for a long time found himself getting rather worried.

“What do you mean injuries?”

The group looked around at each other nervously before looking back at Naru.

“Well while you were gone it was obvious we weren’t going to sit around and do nothing. All of us have our jobs to do and on the occasional bigger case we would get together. We recently finished a rather difficult case and during it Mai managed to get herself kidnapped and spent a few days without food and water. She also sustained a few minor cuts and bruises, nothing too serious but enough for a few stitches.” Ayako explained.

Naru could have laughed at the fact that Mai still managed to get herself into trouble no matter the occasion. It looked like while he was away was no exception. But if they were working as a team wouldn’t it mean that they required someone to make major decisions? A leader to say what has to be done and make sure things stay balanced while figuring out what was going on and the best course of action.

“You’re wondering who was the one giving orders aren’t you?”

Naru raised an eyebrow at Yasu. “Well?” he asked.

Yasu grinned cheekily, “Oh but isn’t it more fun to guess?” he asked.

It was obvious that Naru wasn’t going to get any answers there. He turned to the others and scanned them.

“Takigawa-san” he guessed after a moment. Monk shook his head. “Not me Naru”

“Matsuzaki-san” he tried. Once again a negative answer.

Lin looked at them thoughtfully scanning over them. Naru was about to make another guess based on out-dated logic when Lin cut him off.

“It wouldn’t happen to be you would it Taniyama-san?” he asked looking at Mai.

Said girl seemed to look around for something.

“I don’t see my mother or father’s ghosts anywhere so I hope you weren’t addressing me,” she mumbled jokingly.

Lin gave her a confused look causing Mai to huff.

“My name is Mai- _chan_ if you insist of adding honorifics. Everyone else just calls me Mai so I don’t see why you have to be so complicated” she grumbled much to the amusement of the others.

Rolling his eyes the man spoke again, “Fine. Then is it you Mai- _san?_ ”

Mai pursed her lips at the intended annoyance. “I don’t know how you came up with that conclusion, I was sure I’d be the last person you’d pick” she stated evasively.

Naru silently nodded along. He wouldn’t expect it to be Mai. He was sure it’d Bou-san but he had been proven wrong and the one with the next best amount of experience was Ayako but that had been wrong too. Even so there was no way it could be Mai, was there? She had never shown any interest in being a leader, nor did she ever show him the necessary qualities.

“You don’t have to be so embarrassed” Yasu cooed, moving from his seat to sling his arm over her shoulder.

“I’m not embarrassed,” Mai denied crossing her arms and looking away from him.

Yasu smirked, “so you admit it?”

Mai turned back to him, “wipe that smirk off your face and I didn’t give orders” she huffed.

Bou-san raised an eyebrow, “then what do you call it?” he asked curiously.

She looked deep in thought before she grinned back at them triumphantly. “I call it using my intuition to keep you guys out of trouble”

“And then getting yourself hurt” Ayako added causing Mai to glare at her.

“I don’t always get hurt!” she protested.

“Oh yeah? Name one case where you’ve gotten out unscathed” Challenged Ayako.

“Um, ah no, there was always… no not that one, what about… not that one either” Mai muttered to herself before deflating slightly.

“You win”

“I told you so”

Mai rolled her eyes, noticing the sun going down out of the corner of her eye. “I hate to say this guys but it’s getting late, I haven’t eaten since breakfast, and I really need to shower, study, and sleep. So I just need to know when we’re leaving and then I can figure out the next part of my schedule”

Nodding Naru stood up from his chair followed by Lin, “We leave to go back to England in one week. BSPR will be responsible for costs and I’ll ring you all soon to let you know the rest of the details” Naru informed.

The Mai and the others stood from their chairs too and they all made their way out. Mai was about to leave when she realised she had forgotten her phone.

“I’ll see you all soon” Mai called going back to get her phone. Once she had grabbed it and made sure that she had the rest of her things she quickly made her way back to the doors. Aas she was walking back she noticed Naru still standing there.

“What are you still doing here?” she asked.

Naru sighed, “I wanted to talk to you. Besides, you shouldn’t be walking around on your own at times like these”

Mai rolled her eyes and gave him an exasperated look, “what? Because I’m a woman?” she snarled walking out the door and turning to lock the doors. Once they were locked she gave him a pointed look. “because I can take care of myself”

As she stepped to walk away Mai’s foot hit a small stone and before she knew it she was falling towards the ground. Right before she hit the ground she felt herself pulled back into a strong chest.

“No, I think I’m more worried about you getting yourself killed,” he whispered into her ear. “And I already told you, I needed to speak with you. Not that your small amount of brain cells can remember what happened only a minute ago” he added smirking.

Mai shivered before quickly moving away to glare at him, ignoring how much she instantly missed his arms around her. Without waiting to see if he was going to follow her she began walking towards her apartment. After a few moments Naru had caught up to her with. Neither  one of them spoke as they finished the walk to her apartment in silence. It wasn’t uncomfortable but it wasn’t exactly comfortable either.

When they finally reached her complex, Mai walked into the lobby and made her way over to the elevator with Naru following close behind. Mai hit the 23rd floor and waited in silence for them to reach her floor.

Once they finally did, she made her way to her door and opened it, turning on the lights. She turned around and saw Naru standing there. Sighing she gestured for him to come in.

“Since you’re already here, do you want some tea?” she inquired.

“Yes”

Naru inwardly smiled. It had been too long since he’d had her tea and despite having some of it this morning, he was still going through withdrawal symptoms.

Mai didn’t comment about his lack of manners as she made her way to the kitchen and place the kettle of the stove and waited for it to boil before adding tea leaves and letting them steep. She took the next few minutes while waiting to think of what Naru could want to talk about. But even with those minutes she couldn’t think of anything.

Deciding she’d find out soon enough, Mai grabbed the tea and handed Naru his cup.

“Thanks” he stated.

Mai nearly fell over from shock but quickly bypassed it when she noticed the slight smirk on his face.

“You’re welcome. Now what did you want to talk to me about?” Mai asked, getting straight to the point as she took a seat across from him.

Naru seemed to look slightly nervous as he smelled his tea before taking a long sip, something Mai recognised as what he did when he felt guilt or similar.

“I wanted to apologise for what I said that day at the lake. It was completely uncalled for and inconsiderate. I am truly sorry”

Mai looked at him in shock.

“It’s ok” she sighed, “I got over that for the most part within a month. Emotions were running high and it was a bad time to confess my feelings for you. However and do take offense to the fact that you told me how I felt and that you think I would be so inconsiderate as to use you as a _replacement_ ”

Naru nodded, “I just felt like it was necessary for me to apologise to you. It would be very unprofessional for us to go to England under such awkward circumstances. As the _leader_ of the others and a soon-to-be student of Cambridge surely you can understand that.”

Mai nodded in agreement, “Yeah, I can understand that and wait are you mocking me?”

Naru smirked, placing his empty cup down on the coffee table, “No, simply checking to make sure that you hadn’t lost anymore brain cells since the last time we spoke” he spoke, standing up and moving towards the door.

“YOU NARCISSISTIC JERK” Mai shouted as Naru opened the door. Before he left he turned to a slightly angry Mai and smiled a genuine smile before closing the door and leaving.

**Me:  And that is all for this chapter**

**Mai: Are you alright?**

**Me: Ummm yeah.. no not really. Just a warning that if this wasn’t anything like the first 1000 words it is because the only reason I had this chapter out so soon is because I needed to get away from my asshole of a father and was crying while I wrote this…**

**Everyone: *awkward silence***

**Me: And I have no idea while I just shared that with the world but oh well**

**Naru: Idiot**


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: Here’s the next chapter!**

**Mai: Shellsan doesn’t own ghost hunt or the referenced book**

Mai stared blankly at the door after Naru left before letting a huge smile take over her face while her heart fluttered. ‘Naru just smiled. He looks so nice when it reaches his eyes’ Mai thought while moving around her room to get changed into something more comfortable and then falling asleep, replay that moment over and over in her head

~TiMe SkIpY To NeXt NiGhT~

Mai was sitting down reading a book called ‘Emotions Links’ while she ate dinner when her phone rang. Reaching over to the table, placing her salad down, and hitting the answer button she spoke.

“Hello?”

 _“Hello Mai_ ” Naru’s voice spoke through the receiver.

“Oh hey Naru! Whats up?” she asked curious as to why he would be calling her at this time of the night.

_“There was a change of plans. Are you able to leave tomorrow?”_

Mai eyebrows furrowed in thought, “I’ll have to check but it should be alright. What did the others say?”

_“They said it was fine and that they didn’t have anything to do anyway.”_

Mai laughed, “Sounds about right. I’ll talk to my friend to see if she can cover for me sooner than expected. When do we leave?”

There was a slight pause as Naru checked over something _, “The plane leaves at 11 in the morning but you need to be there at 10”_ he answered _._

Mai nodded before realising he couldn’t see her and replying, “Ok, I’ll see you then. Bye Naru”

_“Bye”_

There was a short beeping sound as Naru hung up and Mai sighed before hitting a few buttons on her phone.

_“Hello?” Came the voice from the other side of the phone._

“Hey Michelle, do you think you could do me a favour?”

There was a short pause as the girl on the other side seemed to contemplate the thought. _“Alright what is it?”_

Mai sighed, “Apparently my plane is leaving tomorrow at 11 and I need to be there at 10. Can you take over the shop a little earlier than planned?”

_“As long as I’m being paid, I have no issues.”_

Mai grinned, “Thanks so much!” she exclaimed.

_“Yeah, yeah now go back to reading your book or something and then get some rest. Plane rides are tiring”_

Mai groaned, “Fine, talk to you in a few days”

 _“Bye”_ was the response before there was the beeping sound of another ended call.

Mai smiled at the thought of leaving early. She couldn’t wait to go to London. She would also be meeting her soon-to-be professor early and getting to work with Naru again! She could hardly sit still. But then there was also the factor that she may screw up on the case and do something stupid and embarrass herself. Or she might make a bad impression on Martin Davis.

Mai sat there attempting to calm the nerves that suddenly plagued her at the thought of going to England. Getting up she made herself some tea. Taking a long sip she sighed, releasing her nerves and settling to finish her salad and book.

About three hours later Mai finished her book and began to quickly clean up the dishes from her dinner before making her way to the bathroom and taking a quick, five minute shower, and changing into a some sweats and a loose shirt.

She double checked she had everything for her trip before climbing into bed and allowing herself to fall into a deep sleep.

The next morning, Mai woke up and looked at her clock. 9:30the colours blinked in neon red. Groaning, she pulled herself out of bed and took a quick shower before changing and checking the time again. 9:39 it read. Silently cursing herself, Mai grabbed her suitcase, purse, phone (which was now fully charger), stuffed the charger into her purse and grabbed a couple biscuits before heading out the door.

Mai preferred walking whenever she could and since it was only a fifteen minute walk to the airport from her apartment she figured it couldn’t hurt. Taking the first few steps she absentmindedly nibbled on her biscuits as she made her way to her destination carrying her luggage. Normally someone carting stuff around would look weird but because Mai was a fairly light packer she didn’t look too odd as she walked around.

As expected, after fifteen minutes Mai had arrived. Checking her watch she noticed it said 9:59. Grinning to herself she looked around and quickly spotted Naru and the others, them having already arrived.

“Hey guys” she greeted waving.

Bou-san grinned, dropping his stuff and moving to hug Mai.

“Good morning Jou-chan!” he exclaimed hugging her tightly. Mai chocked slightly over his shoulder as she was lifted off the ground trying to signal at Ayako to help her.

Thankfully she took the hint and moved towards them landing a hard hit on the monks head. Said man shouted in pain, his hands loosening and placing her down as he rubbed his now sore head.

“What was that for you old hag!”

Ayako gave him an angered look before landing another hit on poor Bou-sans head.

“That was for trying to choke my Mai!”

Bou-san huffed, “She’s not _your_ Mai” he grumbled.

Mai groaned, moving over to the others. She smiled at John and Masako.

“Morning John, Masako, Yasu”

Masako covered her mouth but Mai could tell she had a small smile on her doll like face and accepted it as a greeting.

“Good morning Mai” John answered smiling sweetly.

Yasu grinned, slinging an arm over Mai’s shoulder. “Oh and what a good morning it is Mai!” he stated dramatically. Mai sighed before smiling mischievously and leaning over to Yasu’s ear and whispered something. Yasu smirked when she pulled away.

“Oh how sneaky you are Mai!”

Mai rolled her eyes, “Only to get you off my back. We’re even now” she replied with a shrug. Yasu grinned at the obvious enjoyment in her eyes. He pushed up his glasses, “Yes we are even now but I highly doubt that’s why you told me that.”

Giving him an innocent look over her shoulder, Mai just walked over to the only sane people of the group.

“Morning Naru, Lin” she acknowledged smiling.

Lin gave her a slightly smile and a nod.

Naru just regarded her with a bored look. Or at least he attempted to. “What did you tell Yasuhara?” he inquired, trying not to sound interested in the slightest.

Mai blinked, “I have no idea what you’re talking about. I was just saying good morning like I did to everyone else” she answered innocently, glancing at Yasu from the corner of her eye.

Naru scoffed, “You’re a bad liar. You said something other than good morning to him. What was it?”

Mai grinned, “Is it so bad to have a conversation with a friend of mine?”

“It is if the result is Yasuhara wreaking havoc” Naru quipped.

Mai laughed, “How do you know that he will be “wreaking havoc” so to speak?” she inquired

Naru gave her a disbelieving look, “It would be almost impossible to miss the on his face right now,” he stated before adding, “Or the one you had moments ago”.

“Since I can’t lie I guess I’ll just do this.”

Mai looked at a confused Naru before moving her finger from side to side as she said, “It’s. A. Se-cret”

Naru scowled at the girl, slightly annoyed that she wouldn’t tell him what she had told Yasu.

From the side Lin watched the two teenagers argue in silent amusement. The fact that Naru would get jealous over some scheme Mai was a part of and wouldn’t tell him about was funny on its own. If you added Mai into the equation acting innocent it made for the perfect entertainment. Checking his watch he sighed walking closer to the pair.

“Noll, Mai. We have to start boarding now” he stated.

Mai nodded, quickly moving to tell the others before Naru managed to get her to talk. That could ruin her plans.

“Guys we’re leaving” Mai informed them.

Nodding they picked up their bags and moved to get on the place.

The seating plan ended up with Mai sitting next to Lin, Bou-san and Ayako behind them, Masako and John beside and finally Yasu and Naru (A/N This is the exact order from the window making Mai window seat etc.)

Mai grinned looking out the window.

“We won’t take off for at least five minutes Mai-chan” Lin informed the excited girl.

Mai pouted before turning to the Chinese man and smiling. “You called me Mai- _chan_ ” she exclaimed happily.

Lin sighed, “If you continue to be so excited over it I’ll revert to using your last name again” he warned half-heartedly. He highly doubted he would do that but she didn’t need to know that minor fact. It would ruin the threat.

Lin looked at her in time to see her nod her head childishly. That was when the plane began to get ready to take off. Mai quickly buckled her seatbelt along with the others and prepared for the plane to take off.

~OvEr WiTh NaRuU~

Naru looked over at Mai from his seat ignoring the knowing look Yasu gave him. She looked like a child on Christmas and he suddenly wished that he was the one sitting next to her and watching her excited expressions as they took off.

Yasu pushed his glasses up making them glare slightly, “You should stop looking before she realises” he stated.

Naru quickly looked away to glare at Yasu. “I have no idea what you’re talking about” he lied, pulling out a case file.

Yasu looked at it with faint interest. “Is that the case file for the one we’re working on?” he inquired curiously.

Naru looked up briefly and nodded. “I figured I would use this time to go over the information and make sure we haven’t missed anything that could be of even the slightest significance.”

Yasu leaned over slightly to take a look.

~BaCk WiTh MaI~

The plane was in the air and she had settled down slightly, much to the amusement of the couple behind them and Lin.

Deciding there was nothing more exciting going on, she reached into her bag and pulled out her book and opened it, making herself comfortable.

For a while it was quiet except for the chatter of the passengers. Eventually Lin got curious about the book that had managed to hold Mai’s attention for so long without her falling asleep while reading it.

“What are you reading?” he asked glancing up from the case file he had, identical to Naru’s.

Mai didn’t even look up from her novel as she replied, “Dragon Keeper”.

Lin blinked, that sounded vaguely familiar. “Is it good? What’s it about?”

This time Mai did look up and she had a bright smile on her face. “It’s really good. I’ve read it and the rest of the books from the series at least twelve times. It’s based in ancient China, Han dynasty about a slave girl who saves the life of a dragon and then escapes from the slavery she had been kept in for years along with an odd stone that has to be protected.”

Lin raised an eyebrow, “It’s based in China?” he asked slightly intrigued and surprised that something like that would attract her attention.

Mai grinned, “Yeah. You shouldn’t be so surprised. I’ve read a lot of things Chinese based”.

“Why? I didn’t think you were the type to enjoy reading history…”

Rolling her eyes she smiled, “I’m no huge history fanatic. I just like a good myth or legend. Chinese folklore has some amazing history regardless. That and Greek mythology. That’s about the only thing I read other than books on parapsychology.”

Lin nodded at the new information. “Interesting, I never thought you’d be the type for that sort of thing” he mused.

Mai pouted, “Not you too. Ayako, Bou-san, Masako, John and Yasu said the same thing when they found out too” she huffed, slightly annoyed at their lack of belief in her hobbies.

The older man sighed, “You just never showed much enthusiasm towards anything that involved learning before.”

Scoffing, she crossed her arms, “have you seen me at school or outside work for that matter? Yasu has, ask him what I’m like. I’m going back to my book”.

Turning back to her book, Lin could tell that he wouldn’t get any more information out of her so he decided to go back to his case file. Perhaps he would ask Yasuhara about what she’s like outside work later.

~TiMe SkIpY~

An announcement sounded over the speakers.

“We are now arriving in England. Please make sure all seatbelts are fastened”

Mai jolted awake and quickly packed her stuff away, preparing for them to land. She couldn’t wait for them to get off so she could look around. As they stepped off the plane Mai looked around taking things in.

“Stop standing there like an idiot” Naru said, smirking at her.

Mai huffed, “I can’t help but look around though”

Sighing, Naru grabbed her arm and began dragging her causing Mai to move quicker and push his hand away. He let go when he felt her hand touch his seeing as she seemed to be keeping up. It was a good thing she didn’t pack heavy.

The whole group made their way through the crowds of people until Bou-san noticed a woman they hadn’t seen in ages.

“Mai, have you noticed?” he asked grinning.

Mai blinked up at him before looking where he was pointing and gasping excitedly.

**Me: And then it ends**

**Mai:OK then..**

**Me: Yay another update! And it’s long then the others too**

**Naru: But they want to read a case…**

**Me: *pouts* I knoooww but we had to make it to England first!**

**Naru: …**

**Me: Thank-you. Please read and review. They give me reason to write :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: Hey everyone!**

**Mai: She’s back with yet another chapter**

**Naru: You still don’t update often enough**

**Me: Well stuff ya!**

**Naru: What?**

**Me: *rolls eyes* Never mind**

**Mai: … So anyway Shellsan doesn’t own ghost hunt and she thanks you for the reviews you all take the time to post!**

**Me: Yup! I love you all so much!**

Mai waved towards her happily while the others rolled their eyes. She didn’t seem worried about making a scene in the slightest.

Madoka grinned at the waving girl and quickly moved towards her. “Mai! How are you? What have you been up to? Got any new boyfriends? Are you doing much with the paranormal at all?” She fired quickly, wanting to know what the younger girl had been doing in the time she hadn’t seen her. She wou have continued had it not been for Lin stepping up to her and giving her a look that clearly told her to calm down.

Mai giggled, jumping over to give her a hug as soon as she was in distance.

“I’ve been great! I own my own little tea café and I’ve been studying parapsychology in between work and the occasional case together with the others” Mai answered, avoiding the boyfriend subject completely.

Madoka nodded in approval before turning to the others.

“Welcome to England! Let’s get your stuff and then we’ll head over to the Davis Mansion to eat. You’ll also stay there” she informed.

They all nodded and followed Madoka and Lin to get their luggage before walking outside and jumping into a van similar to the one they had in Japan and another black car. Naturally Lin was driving the van. Madoka sat in shotgun leaving the others to organise themselves.

In the end, Ayako, Bou-san and Yasu ended up in the front with Masako and John sitting behind them.

Naru sighed before looking at Lin. The man nodded and threw Naru a set of keys before he set off.

Walking over to the car, he pressed the button, hearing the car unlock. Waving Mai over, he took a seat behind the wheel. Mai rushed over and grabbed the seat next to him and waited for him to start driving.

After about 5 minutes of awkward silence Naru spoke.

“So how much does Madoka know about the last year I’ve been gone?” he asked.

Mai shrugged, “No more then you or Lin. Less in fact” she responded.

Naru glanced away from the road to give her a shocked look before turning back. “I thought you kept in touch with her through the past year” he stated.

Sighing, the brunette looked down and mumbled something incoherent.

“Speak up Mai. You’re always loud. I didn’t think you were going to change that anytime soon”

Mai’s head snapped at him, a blush covering her face. “Well sorry for being loud!” she shouted.

Naru rolled his eyes, “Are you going to tell me or not?”

Pouting Mai was about to say something when she saw something in the distance.

Upon closer look she realised it was a mansion. The walls were a stylish white with intricate patterns running over the bordering. It was two stories with windows at each bedroom and an arch at the middle of the huge structure with more patterning. Below the arch was an entryway with stairs on either side and lamps on either side of wooden doors. The driveway went from both directions like a two way round-about with a magnificent marble fountain with a statue of Gaia as the masterpiece in the centre.

Her eyes were wide and her mouth dropped at the amazing mansion.

Pulling up outside the front behind Lin’s van, Naru turned to her smirking.

“Close your mouth before you catch flies, and if your eyes get any bigger they might fall out” he said before opening his door and getting out.

Mai’s mouth quickly retracted and she undid her seatbelt and opened her door as well, getting out.

She followed Naru over to the others who had arrived only minutes before them.

“Mai are you seeing what I’m seeing?!” Bou-san exclaimed.

The brunette nodded wordlessly as she took in the gardens that surrounded the mansion. She didn’t know what she would do if the inside was like this!

Yasu grinned making his way over to Bou-san.

“Oh my love!” he proclaimed, slinging his arms around Bou-san in a hug, “One day, our love will be recognised and we will live in a mansion much like this one!”

The monk flailed against the younger, attempting to get out of his surprisingly strong grip.

“Would you let go!” he demanded, “I don’t love you!”

Pouting, Yasu did as requested and made his way over to Mai.

“Mai- _chan_! Tell Bou-san that our love knows no bounds! His words wound me!” he proclaimed dramatically, falling onto the girl. Had she not been prepared for the weight that would fall onto her, she may have fallen over.

“I’m sorry Yasu. But please allow me to comfort you in the pain that must have descended upon the horrible things he has said”

She rubbed his back as he pretended to cry on her shoulder in pain.

The act would have continued, allowing Madoka, –athough secretly- Lin and Naru, amusement had it not been for Ayako who hit them both on the head with her purse. The hit towards Mai was quite noticeably less painful.

“That’s enough you two. I _don’t_ appreciate the acting, much less encourage it and would much prefer it if we get this moving along. Not to sound rude but it has been a long flight” she explained turning to Madoka as she did so.

The woman nodded grinning, “Right, sorry! Come on in” she said, pushing them towards the stairs and up to the door. Opening it, she waved them in.

Upon seeing the inside, Mai –along with the others- nearly fainted.

The room was a fairly large and had two curved, marble staircases leading to the second floor- To which the banisters were a swirly metal pattern in black. The ground was shiny white tiles with slightly creamier white walls giving the room an open feeling.

There was a set of French doors in the middle of the stairs where the ground went down a couple steps.

Naru rolled his eyes and kept moving, walking through the previously seen double doors. “Are you coming or not?” he queried.

Quickly snapping out of their previous state, they tried to catch up with the boy.

He led them through the doors and into the room behind it. It appeared to be a large meeting room connecting to two other rooms on each side and the backyard. Before they had a chance to examine the room, Naru was gesturing for them all to take a seat at a long coffee brown table.

“Lin, could you inform my father of our arrival?” He questioned.

The Chinese man nodded, walking over to one of the rooms on the side, leaving them to figure out where they were going to sit.

Naru sat right to the head of the table and Madoka sat to the left leaving the others to figure out the seating. Mai thought for a moment before making up her mind and taking a seat next to Naru. Yasu grinned and took a seat in front of her –next to Madoka. Bou-san took a seat next to Mai with Ayako following suit. Masako sat next to Yasu with John next to him.

Moments later, Lin exited the room which appeared to be a study with a middle aged man following behind him. His hair was a slightly grey brown and his face was that like any other ordinary man in his late thirties.

The man -presumably Martin Davis- took a seat at the head of the table while Lin took a seat next to John.

 **“If at all possible, I would like to know if any of you can’t speak English”** he said, clearing his throat.

Naru looked at his father, **“The only ones who aren’t fluent are Miss Matsuzaki and Takigawa”** he replied before anyone else could.

Martin looked over at two Naru was pointing at and nodded, giving them an apologetic look. Ayako nodded in understanding before turning to Mai. “Can you translate for us throughout this?” she questioned.

Mai blinked in surprise when Bou-san nodded in agreement.

“How about I write down the Japanese translation for you to read over as we go. That way we won’t have to stop.” She suggested.

Naru gave her a surprised look, “You thought of that?”

Mai gave him an annoyed look, “This isn’t the only time. Besides, I write quickly,” she huffed.

The boy rolled his eyes before turning back to his father. He was about to explain when Mai spoke.

 **“Excuse me Dr. Davis. Would it be alright if I were to simply write down translations and they can read over them as we go over the case?”** she requested boldly.

Martin gave a shocked look towards her and then to her son. This girl was obviously brave. He had yet to even introduce himself and he didn’t know her but yet she spoke out to him. He was expecting his son to so most of the talking because Madoka had told him that he had an ‘intimidating look’.

Never the less, he nodded in approval.

 **“As long as you’re able to keep up with the briefing, I don’t see a problem”** he replied.

Yasu gave her a look, **“Why don’t you try-“** he stated before feeling a strong kick to his leg causing him to hiss quietly.

Martin turned his gaze from Mai to Yasu. **“What were you saying?”** he asked.

Before Yasu could do anymore damage to the already confused room –including the others- Mai cut him off. **“I apologise Dr. Davis, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. You can start the briefing. We’re all eager to find out what exactly we are dealing with”** she stated with a smiled.

Nodding, slightly dazed martin cleared his throat again. Quickly Mai pulled a notebook from no-where and a pen placing it in front of her.

**“The case that we are dealing with was requested by an old friend of mine and Luella’s Gwendolyn Baker. She’s elderly lady now and lives with her daughter, her daughter’s husband and her two grandchildren. Her grandchildren are both only young teenagers. They recently moved into a mansion closer to the country in order to have a little more peace. However, as soon as they moved in things began to happen. Late at night there would be screams of a young teenage girl whom was not Megan –the youngest and only female grandchild in the current residence of the house.”**

He explained watching as Mai took down the information almost as he said it and gave it to the others to read through while she grabbed a new page to continue writing on.

**“They have also reported seeing a young man lurking near Megan and Gwendolyn’s daughter Jean. At first that was all he would do up until a week but then he began to attack them. Megan has been slapped and Jean had woken up with bruises and hand shaped marks around her neck from nearly choking. Worst of all, yesterday Megan went missing after being dragged down the hallways.”**

As Martin explained the attacks he handed around pictures that had been taken off them.

Bou-san looked at the images in disgust along with the others but Mai looked emotionless.

Naru was beginning to get worried and discreetly tapped her leg. She turned to look at Naru and that was when he noticed the sadness in her eyes and the with-held tears.

He narrowed his eyes slightly when he realised she also looked sightly uncomfortable.

 **“Mai? Do you know something?”** he asked quietly, hoping his father wouldn’t hear. Sadly, that wasn’t the case.

Martin looked over to his son and overheard his whispering. Curiously, he looked at the girl.

 **“If you know anything that could be of use I would much like to hear it”** he said.

Mai looked at Naru who sighed and nodded. Gulping, she collected her thoughts before beginning her explanation.

 **“I had a dream the day when Naru and Lin came back”** she began before noticing the confused look on Martin’s face. Deciding to save Mai the trouble, Yasu spoke up. **“Naru was the nickname Mai gave to Oliver”** he explained, making sure to use Naru’s real name and not is alias.

Martin raised an eyebrow but figured he would find out later, gesturing to Mai to continue.

Nodding, she once again began her story. **“As I was saying, I had a dream. It was third person and I was outside an old mansion in the country with a majestic look. I watched as a woman was beaten down by her husband for talking out of turn at a family meeting. From what I gathered, he along with his family, were sexist and were brought up that way. Females were nothing but a host for a child. She demanded he let her go, stating she would not allow her child to grow up under the conditions she was given. He attacked her, cutting off her vocal chords only allowing her to live because he carried child. After that I went through a brief time flash and the only thing I could really make out was the scream of the daughter when her mother was killed before her very eyes”**

Martin looked at her in astonishment at the brief but detailed story.

 **“And why do you think this has anything to do with the case in which we were just discussing?”** He queried, interested to see what the story behind her dream was. Maybe her explanation could shed some light on if these dreams were even real –not that he doubted they were.

Mai smiled, **“I’m afraid that the only reason I can give you other than the sexist match-up is instinct”**

**Me: And so that concludes yet another chapter’**

**Mai: Wow… that’s a lot of bold speaking**

**Naru: You should make the next chapters Japanese bold instead…**

**Me: I know! I’m not stupid!**

**Naru: I beg to differ**

**Me: *fuming***

**Mai: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Shellsan asks that you review!**

**Me: *Blinks and looks at readers* Oh and tell me what kind of things you would like to happen. If you want you can remain anonymous but if not I will place you at the beginning of the chapter when I bring up something that you wanted to happen! And no I don’t mean cases. Sorry but I decide those. The only other limit is getting Mai and Naru together. I will do that my way. Sorry people, no limit on Mai/Naru moments though :D**

**Naru: *drags me away* Stop rambling. No-one wants to read a long A/N**


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: Hey everyone!**

**Naru: She’s finally back**

**Me: It’s been over a month and I was going to make this chapter longer buuuttttttt**

**Mai: Shellsan is lazy**

**Me: I resent that. I was on a criminal minds marathon all weekend. Almost no sleep**

**Mai and Naru: Lazy**

**Me: Fine. But I am back and hopefully for a while**

**John: Shellsan owns nothing**

Martin looked at her in confusion. She was basing this off of _instinct_?

“And why would this instinct be of any use?” he inquired sceptically. This was to be expected coming from a professor of parapsychology. He had probably heard many people claim that they were psychic and similar. Nevertheless it still hurt Mai knowing that just because he hadn’t seen her work he would question her abilities. ‘Stop it Mai’ she scolded herself mentally for thinking such things. This was her soon-to-be professor. She had no right to question his motives.

Luckily at this point Naru –probably sensing the awkward atmosphere and the fact that Mai was off daydreaming- chose to cut into the conversation and explain. “Father, Mai is a latent psychic. She has strong instincts and is usually right when they come into play. They are highly reliable” he vouched causing the others to look at him shocked.

“I never thought I would hear that come out of your mouth” Madoka teased, grinning.

Martin and Naru sighed and ignoring the pinkette. “Then what of the dream?” Martin inquired, interested to find out more about this girl who -for some reason- seemed vaguely

This time John spoke, “Mai has post cognitive dreams and is able to astral project” he informed, all of them slowly warming up to the man they would be working with.

The elder nodded in understanding and interest. “Would it be possible to run a few tests?”

Naru instantly bristled at the thought. Neither Bou-san nor any of the others seemed very keen on the idea either.

“Father, I would appreciate it if you didn’t suggest such things” he stated.

Martin was about to say something against his son but before he could he found himself being cut off.

“I’m afraid I would have to agree” Lin added, silently fuming at the thought of anything happening to the young girl he had –although reluctantly– come to care for.

Martin gave his son and Lin a surprised look. “Bu-“He began but before he could say anything else Mai shook her head towards them. “Naru, I know you and everyone else here feel a need to speak up about  that sort of question and yes Bou-san I can here you mumbling angrily but I have a right to speak for myself” she spoke professionally.

They all looked over to Mai in surprise.

“Mai I’m not going to let you-,“ Naru started before being cut off from by  a direct look of annoyance on Mai’s part.

“I never said I was going to let the professor run any tests on me. I simply stated that I have a right to make decisions for myself.”

Sighing, they all nodded backing down though unwillingly.

“So then, I’m going to assume your name is Mai correct? What would your answer on the subject be?” Martin inquired, interested in what the girl would have to say.

The brunette smiled, “It would be a no I’m afraid”. Before anyone could question her choice in answer Mai chose to continue. “While I would like to see the strength and train my powers some more I am against any sort of testing. Besides, if a friend of mine found out I’d be on the first plane home”

Yasu seemed about to make a comment but before he could he hissed in pain again while Mai remained innocent and the look on her face had not so much as faulted. Even so, it was obvious that Mai had been responsible for the kick.

Martin sighed nodding, “Alright but if you ever change your mind…” he trailed off.

“I doubt I will but thank-you for the offer.”

Naru nearly sighed in relief when he heard Mai’s reply and he was certain he wasn’t the only one. Deciding to get them onto the task at hand, Naru turned to his father. “When do we leave?” he inquired.

Martin snapped out of his thoughts on the intriguing girl at the sound of his son’s voice. “Ah, of course. You leave tomorrow. The sooner the better.”

Naru nodded in agreement, secretly worried for the family he had met but a few times.

It was during this quiet moment that the door burst open and an over excited woman came into the room. Naru visibly stiffened, slightly annoyed.

“Well it’s about time you all finished. You’ve been in here for the past hour and a half. I wanted to meet everyone!” she exclaimed.

Naru and Martin both pinched the bridge of their noses in annoyance causing Mai to giggle.

“Hello mother” Naru greeted.

The woman’s eyes lit up and she immediately rushed over to Naru. “Oh Noll! I missed you so much! Have you been eating properly? How much sleep did you get? You haven’t been over working yourself again have you?”

Naru rolled his eyes and ignored his mother’s fussing.

Sighing, Martin looked over at the woman. “Luella dear, maybe you should introduce yourself” he suggested, earning a discreet look of thanks from Naru. Or at least as much of a thanks that Naru was known for.

Immediately Luella turned to the room. “Of course! How rude of me. It’s nice to meet you all, my names Luella Davis but you can all call me Luella.” Mai turned to the others and translated it for Bou-san and Ayako so that they knew what was going on.

Ayako nodded smiling at the woman. Turning to Mai she sighed, “Can you translate for me?” she asked. Mai nodded and was ready to translate for her sister-like co-worker. However before she could she was surprised to hear Japanese being spoken.

 **“Hello dear. I assume you aren’t able to speak English then?”** Luella asked, making her way over to the chatting couple.

Ayako nodded. **“Unfortunately after a few circumstances, both this goof over here and I weren’t able to.”**

Everyone except Mai and Martin looked over to her curiously. Obviously Mai knew what she was talking about and took it upon herself to translate for the professor seeing as Naru, Lin and Madoka were too busy trying to get the information out of her.

Martin nodded in thanks towards Mai before also turning to Ayako and Bou-san with interest.

 **“What kind of circumstances?”** Madoka inquired grinning. Whatever was going through her mind at this point did not appear to be good.

Ayako shifted slightly uncomfortably and with a single look passed the honours onto a rather flustered Bou-san. **“Ummm we can’t tell?”**

Madoka pouted, **“Awww come on! Did you two get engaged or something?”**

Mai scoffed, **“Nah, their engagements old news now”** she muttered.

Madoka, Naru and Lin’s turned to Mai. **“Wait… WHAT?!”** Madoka shouted excitedly.

Bou-san covered his ears in an attempt to protect his poor eardrums at the pitch of it.

He shot a playful glare at Mai. **“Was that necessary?”**

The brunette shrugged. **“I’m not sure. Probably.”**

The monk sighed and continued to shoot small glares back and forwards while they all calmed down.

Inwardly while she glared back and forwards with her ‘older brother’ she was relieved. It was a good thing she managed to get them to stop asking questions… at least for now.

As she began to lose herself in her thoughts Naru noticed her grinning as her eyes went from one side of the room to the other. It was… odd to say the least. Upon looking closer he realised that she also appeared to be having a conversation with herself quietly.

Moving away from the chatting girls who in all the commotion has managed to crowd together and were jumping up and down and being excited, in their own ways. Most of the guys had been dragged up and were now chatting over near them.

The closer Naru got to Mai, the more he became aware of the fact that she wasn’t randomly darting her eyes back and forwards, she was _following_ something with her eyes.

Glancing over at Lin he noticed that the elder was just as confused. Turning back to Mai, Naru ended up standing next to her.

“Are you alright?” he inquired curiously. Mai blinked in shock, looking up at Naru.

“I’m fine. Why?”

Just as she said it, Naru watched Mai duck as if trying to get hit by something. Shooting a glare at thin air Mai attempted to pretend nothing had happened. Turning to look over at Lin, he noticed recognition on Lin’s features and waited as the Chinese man made his way over to the pair.

Trying to slink away from the elder, Mai made a move to get away from the intimidating couple. “Mai” Lin stated with a stern look. As she made a move to get up se found herself trapped between them. At the current point in time the rest of the team and Naru’s parents appeared to be oblivious to what was going on, much to Mai’s relief and disappointment.

“Y-yes?” she stuttered trying to look normal as she sat up a little straighter, no longer darting her eyes around and rather, turning them towards the man she was speaking to.

Lin sighed, “Just then what did you duck from?”

Mai looked around for some sort of escape and groaned when she found none. “Ummm nothing?”

Naru scoffed, “Because normal people randomly duck, talk to themselves and look back and forwards between walls.”

Lin nodded in agreement, “Indeed. I also find it very interesting that at the exact moment my _shiki_ are flying towards you, you try to get away from it” he added.

Naru shot a glare at Lin. His _shiki_ were attacking Mai. The hell was he thinking. He would be sure to have a word with the elder. He was continuing his mini mind rant when he heard Mai mutter something. _‘When did she start muttering so quietly?’_ He asked himself.

“I couldn’t hear you” Naru stated.

Grumbling Mai huffed and crossed her arms. “Fine. I was playing with Jun, Min and Hui. Happy now?”

Naru looked at Mai confused, “Who’s Min, Jun and Hui?” he asked.

The brunette opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by Lin. “They’re three of my _shiki_. They tend to hang around Mai more than the others so that we could keep her out of danger. Or at least they did. My question is –since when could you see them?”

Mai sighed, “I’ve been able to see them since the Urado case. They were the whole reason I could stand riding in the van with two statues. How do you not notice me playing a game of charades with your own _shiki?_ I mean it’s not like you were busy. Oh wait, you were being statues” she grumbled sarcastically.

“Why those three though?” Naru inquired curiously, taking mental notes on the new knowledge.

Shrugging, Mai sighed. “Because I was bored and they are the most of fun. The rest are too boring. I mean all of Lin’s _shiki_ are special in their own way because they were once a different type of demon. For example Min’s a girl and she’s a dragon demon. Jun and Hui are both males. Jun’s a tiger shifter and Hui’s a jaguar demon” Mai explained.

Nodding in understanding, Naru was about to ask another question when he realised the room was rather quiet. Looking around he noticed that the girls had calmed down and were now looking at Mai with interest along with the rest of the guys. Martin seemed particularly interested.

“You see _shiki_?” Martin asked, back into work mode, taking notes on a sheet of paper.

Slightly off put, Mai nodded. “Yes” she answered, not knowing what else to say.

 **“SINCE WHEN?!”** Ayako and Bou-san exclaimed once John kindly translated for her.

Gulping the girl sighed, “Ummm Urado I think…”

Sensing the atmosphere, Luella grinned. “Enough of this now. I’m sure you’re all tired and hungry. I’ll ask the chef to start on some dinner while you get yourselves settled into your rooms.”

The group nodded following Luella out the door. Mai was the last out of the room along with Naru. Walking behind the group in silence, both seemed to be deep in thought.

 _‘Everywhere I go’_ Mai mentally cried, _‘everywhere I go, they flood through me. The pain, the memories, the hope. I need to get out of this house soon. I can’t think, I breathe I can’t even believe. Peace I feel none, truth without sun, freedom I request before I go to rest.’_

As Mai was lost in her thoughts Naru was trying to figure something out. _‘If Mai has been seeing shiki her powers must have developed. But why didn’t we notice and why wouldn’t she talk to us about it?’_

He glanced at Mai before breaking away from his thoughts. Coincidently, at this point Mai had done the same. Stopping outside a large room Luella turned to Ayako, **“Would you two like a roo together?”** she inquired.

Ayako nodded **, “If it’s not too much trouble. Who knows what this goof could get up to otherwise.”**

Mai rolled her eyes at Ayako’s excuse and then watched as the couple went into their room.

Turning to Masako, Luella smiled and led her to the room next to them. John’s room was across the hall from hers. The only one left was Mai. Lin and Madoka had disappeared with Martin at some point so it was just Luella, Mai and Naru left in the halls. Instead of Mai’s room being near the others, Luella led Mai –and Naru- down the hall to a room which Mai immediately recognised but didn’t say anything.

“You know whose room this was, don’t you.”

It was almost a question. Almost.

“Yes” she gulped, gathering her breath, “It’s Gene’s. Why are we here?”

Naru carefully placed his hand on her shoulder. His throat clenched at the thought of how much he hated the fact that she had fallen in love with Gene. Taking a deep breath, he answered Mai’s question.

“We want to give you the option of staying in this room.”

Mai’s own throat clenched. Thoughts about Gene and Naru as kids ran through her mind and even though she knew she shouldn’t, she nodded. “If that’s okay…” she trailed off.

Luella smiled. “I few had a problem with it, we wouldn’t have offered. Noll’s room is next door if you need anything. He can come get you when dinners ready. Now go get some rest and get settled in until then” she ordered before walking off back down the hall.

Smiling after the woman, Mai turned to Naru and smiled at him with a few small tears in her eyes. “Thank-you” she whispered.

Naru nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes. “Go rest. Crying isn’t attractive.” As the words left his mouth, he turned and entered the room next to hers.

Without another word -mostly due to shock of what Naru had just done- Mai also entered her room before collapsing onto the bed. Pulling the covers over her body she felt herself relax before drifting off, bag left on the floor still packed.

**Me: So there it is. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. I hope I can start on the case next chapter**

**Mai: Read and Review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: So I’m back with another chapter!**

**Mai: What took you so long?!**

**Naru: Told you she was lazy**

**Me: I never denied it!**

**Mai: Shellsan doesn’t own ghost hunt!**

_The darkness closed in and Mai looked around, searching for what the cause of her current predicament was._

_Seeing not even a sign of Gene, she sighed in annoyance. Knowing there wasn’t much she could do, she resigned herself to her fate. It was in this moment that she also realised that she was currently in a body other than her own. The brunette mentally sighed at the scene became warped before changing to reveal what seemed to be the inside of the mansion._

_Looking down she noticed she was treating some wounds. “Mother, you really shouldn’t anger father like that” she felt herself say. The woman looked up at her tiredly. “Bianca honey, I have to stand up to him. I can’t keep letting him do this to you.”_

_‘So her name is Bianca…’_

_She heard a cold laugh come from the doorway. Her head whipped up and her eyes widened in fear at the sight of a middle-aged man standing at the door way. Walking towards her he ripped her away from her mother and slapped her face hard causing Mai/Bianca to fall to the ground. “Foolish woman. Learn your place” the man sneered before slamming the door closed._

_Mai felt her body wince in pain at the red mark._

_Slowly the scene began to fade. At first she thought she was going to end up in another scene but instead she felt her instincts calling her to wake up. Knowing better than to deny herself, she slowly willed herself back into her body, relaxing before she slowly opened her eyes._

Mai groaned as she slowly began to come around. Blinking away her drowsiness, she forced herself out from under the comfortable covers carefully so that she wouldn’t fall over from dizziness.

That was when she felt her face burning. Wincing lightly, she brought her hand to the side of her face and gently placed her fingers against it. Hissing, she sighed in annoyance. “Of all the times” she muttered, before sighing. It’s not like there was anything she could do anyway.

Feeling her feel hit the cool ground, she brushed any crinkles out of her outfit before moving towards the door and opening it. Seeing no-one nearby Mai closed her eyes and concentrated, reaching her mind out to move around the house until she found everyone. Memorising the route she began to make her way to them.

It wasn’t long before she reached the door that would lead her to the others. Carefully she placed one of her hands on the bronze handle and the other against the thick oak wood before pushing the door open just enough to enter the room.

Everyone looked up when they heard the sound of the door opening. Upon seeing Mai, Bou-san grinned. “Look who finally decided to join us.”

Mai smiled slightly. “Sorry, I just woke up” she apologised.

Luella shook her head, “we know. We thought about waking you but Noll was against it.”

Naru shot his mother an annoyed look causing her grin to widen.

“Come take a seat dear” she gestured towards an empty seat between Yasu and Naru. Nodding, Mai quickly took her place. It was then that Ayako noticed the red mark across the right side of her face.

She gasped, “What happened Mai? I don’t remember that being there earlier!” Ayako exclaimed.

Blinking, the brunette realised she was talking about where she was slapped. “It’s nothing” Mai tried to assure the woman but to no avail as the doctor got up and quickly made her way to Mai to check her over.

After a swift check of the mark Ayako narrowed her eyes. “This is a slap mark…”

“Yes it is” Mai agreed evasively.

The others watched in confusion.

“Where did you get a _slap_ mark from exactly?” Naru inquired, glaring at her.

Gulping, Mai shifted her eyes nervously. “I may or may not have had another dream… a first person one… that caused me to acquire the girls wound…” she trailed nervously, using all her strength not to stutter.

Sighing the red-haired woman pulled out a tube and placed it in her hand. “Here’s some cream. _Don’t forget to put it on_ ” she emphasised.

Taking the tube, she nodded at the elder woman. “Yeah yeah I know.”

“Good” Ayako stated, moving back to sit next Bou-san.

Tucking the tube into her pocket, the brunette looked up to see everyone watching her curiously.

“What’s with all those looks” she demanded.

“Mai-Chan people don’t simply get physical injuries from dreaming” Lin stated.

Mai faced placed before wincing at her mistake. “When I dream it’s different from when the normal person dreams.”

Martin looked up from his meal in curiosity. “How so?”

Shaking her head, she smiled at the man. “I would prefer not to discuss such things throughout a meal. I’m sure Luella-san would also prefer not talking about things like that too…”

Luella grinned at Mai. “Quite right. The dinner table is no place for work talk. But you are alright aren’t you?” she inquired, her eyebrows creasing.

The petite girl looked up from her meal which had been served to her by the cooks and grinned. “I’m better than okay. I have more information on the case. I’m great.”

Everyone looked at the smiling girl and couldn’t help but smile along with her.

“So how about someone explains to me this whole “Naru” business to me” Martin suggested.

Yasu looked towards Mai. “Now _that’s_ something you can explain isn’t it Mai?”

Luella looked aver towards her just as curious to hear about this unusual title that everyone was referring to her son by.

Said girl blushed slightly before she began to tell the story of how Naru became Naru.

“Well when I first met Naru I was extremely annoyed with his narcissistic attitude so I randomly came up with Naru short for narcissist and i’ve been calling him it ever since. Almost everyone called him by it, even Lin” she explained smiling fondly.

Naru rolled his eyes. “It’s a stupid nickname.”

No-one payed him any mind as Martin chuckled. “Well it certainly suits him that’s for sure” he agreed.

‘Gene thought so too’ Mai mentally added.

Finishing up their food, everyone slowly got up from their seats and began to walk towards the living room to relax before going to bed – as well as to do the final preparations for the case tomorrow.

Once everyone was settled Martin looked towards Mai.

“You mentioned having another dream?”

Getting the hint she took a deep breath. “From what I could gather in a short period my-no her name was Bianca and we were in some sort of in closed room. I couldn’t see any windows, the ground was cold concrete and there were only a couple beds and a metal door. It was like being in a prison. I was treating my mother’s wounds when the man I assume to be the father walked in and slapped me. That’s where the wound came from.”

Naru quickly took notes on the dream in his usual black notebook.

The thought briefly crossed Mai’s mind that the book seemed to be never ending, I mean how many pages did it have?!

Shaking the thoughts from her head, she realised Martin had asked her a question.

“Sorry Dr Davis, what was that?” she inquired.

Martin sighed, “As I said, you told me that you’d explain how your dreams are different. I am very much interested as to how you got that bruise” he repeated.

Mai nodded in realisation. “Well how should I put this? The theory is that when I dream it’s not just my mind that’s being transported, it’s also my spirit. Kind of like astral projecting into my dreams. Normally getting hurt isn’t something that happens but on the rare occasion if the connection between the myself and the spirits memories is great enough it’s almost like I’m her instead. On these occasions, anything that happens to her/him happens to me,” she explained.

Naru’s eyes widened in realisation. “So that means… that during this case if you’re in a first person dream and the person you are dies, you too will die.” He stated glaring at her from his seat opposite her. She shivered slightly nervous. His eyes, they were just daring her to try and lie.

Mai gulped sensing the fury behind his façade. “Uh… yes?” she stated nervously, avoiding any eye contact.

His glare sharpened causing Mai to feel slightly worried that he might actually kill her. “Mai” he warned.

She put her hands up in surrender. “Sorry Naru. I can’t help how it works. You should know better than anyone. You wrote the theory after all.”

Before he could reply Mai feigned a yawn and stretched slightly. “I’m still extremely tired, I think I’ll take a shower and then go to bed. Is there anything else I need to know about the case, like when we’re leaving?”

Naru pinched the bridge of his nose seeing through her with ease. Everyone watched her worriedly. “Are you sure you’re alright?” John asked, always one to make sure of such things. It might be because Mai couldn’t bring herself to lie to the innocent priest. She often pondered the thought that the guys put him up to it.

Sighing she gave him a small smile. “I will be. I promise.” Nodding he smiled back. “Night” he stated, along with everyone else.

“Alright, we leave at 6. It’s a 2 hours drive. You need to be up at 5” he said, directing his statement towards everyone before also getting up.

Moving towards the door of the room Mai turned to everyone and smiled. “Good night” she stated one last time before leaving them to themselves.

Naru wasn’t far behind her, presumably so that she didn’t get lost.

“Mai” he called as soon as they were out of ear-shot.

Mai stopped briefly before she continued walking. “Yes Naru?”

Sighing, he quickly caught up to her. “That theory…” he trailed.

“What about it” she quipped, attempting to move faster to get away from him. However, Naru simply increased his pace, keeping up with her easily.

Naru grabbed her shoulder making her movements stop. “I’m sure you are aware of the other term required to meet it. But do the others know?”

Mai whipped around, seemingly alarmed at the thought. “Of course they don’t! Heck I don’t even think you know what _you’re_ talking about. Now I’m tired, I just want to shower and sleep. It doesn’t take a genius to know that when I’m dreaming I’m using more energy than when my body is awake and considering in that last 24 hours I’ve had 2 dreams and no real sleep, I am ready to drop dead. I just hope I don’t dream again. Now if you’ll excuse me” she ranted before turning and walking away leaving a rather surprised Naru behind before he also began to walk again.

Moving as fast as possible, Mai attempted to reach her room before Naru could catch up to her. Taking a left, she found herself at the door to the room that that would become her room for a while. Opening the door she exhaled carefully, closing the door after she entered. Luckily the room also had a bathroom in it so she wouldn’t have to share with anyone. Grabbing her clothes and her towel, she made her way into the bathroom and placed them on the sink, hanging her towel up.

Closing and locking the door for extra measure, she turned the water on and stripped, adjusting the water to the perfect temperature. Stepping under the heat she sighed in relaxation, allowing the scolding heat to sooth her body.

After 5 minutes she deemed herself clean enough, too tired to bother washing her hair. It was likely it’d get dirty on the case anyway.

Quickly changing, Mai found herself brushing her teeth, remembering to apply the cream to her face and then packed her stuff back into her bag ready to go in the morning.

Sliding into the warm bed, the brunette slowly felt herself fall asleep.

~JuSt HeRe To TaKe YoU tO mOrNiNg XD~

“-ai. MAI!” someone shouted, jolting Mai from her sleep. Shooting up, Mai felt her head hit someone else’s.

“Owww” she complained, forcing her eyes to open and then wincing at the sudden brightness of the room.

That’s when she noticed Naru standing next to her bed with an impatient look on his face. “Hurry up and get changed. We have to leave soon and you still haven’t eaten.”

Mai groaned before nodding. “Okay, okay. I’ll be out soon” she stated, shooing him out of the room.

Rolling his eyes he spoke before leaving the room, “You have 10 minutes to be downstairs or you don’t get to eat.”

As soon as the door closed, Mai felt her body kick into action, rushing around, she grabbed the clothes she had placed onto the end of the bed and stepped into the bathroom, taking a quick 2 minute shower before changing and rushing downstairs within 5 minutes.

Entering the dining room, she wasted no time in taking a seat and beginning to eat. The others looked at her in amusement. “Slow down Mai. The foods not going anywhere” Ayako scolded.

Ignoring her, Mai continued wolfing her food down.

“Mai!” This time the warning was more forceful causing Mai to try not spit her juice out as she washed some of her food down.

Grinning sheepishly Mai addressed Ayako. “Sorry, I’m really hungry.”

Rolling her eyes the woman crossed her arms, “I don’t care how hungry you are eat slower, you’ll give yourself indigestion.”

Mai grumbled but slowed down, if only slightly.

Across the table, Masako snickered causing Mai to gulp down more juice and then stick her tongue out at the girl. “I don’t see what’s so funny. I can’t help it if I’m hungry! What’s that saying that my mother used to say? The body craves what the body needs I believe and since I’m hungry it must mean my body craves food.”

After her short speech, the brunette simply went back to eating causing John along with everyone else to shake their heads in disbelief.

After breakfast, everyone made their way out to the front to see 2 Vans. One for the equipment and 3 people and the other for everyone else.

“Mai, you’re riding with Lin and I” Naru stated, making his way towards the van with the equipment.

Pouting Mai waved goodbye to everyone and jumped in the back, placing her stuff on the seat.

She watched as Naru and Lin both closed their doors and Lin began driving.

It had only been 5 minutes when Mai felt herself getting bored. Groaning in frustration, she looked up to see Yang floating around head. Grinning, she reached out and grabbed him. The smaller shiki glared towards her.

 _“Oh don’t give me that look”_ she muttered quietly in Chinese hoping Lin wouldn’t hear. _“Let go”_ the sea serpent stated lowly.

The brunette pouted, loosening her grip. _“You’re no fun”_ she complained. Yang simply huffed and went over to sit on Lin’s head causing Mai to giggle. Upon seeing Lin glare at her she sighed before turning around in her seat and pouting.

No more than a minute later she began to kick the seat in front of her in an attempt to get Naru’s attention and sooth her boredom, if only for 5 minutes. Seeing no reaction she huffed.

“Naaaaaruuuuuu” she whined.

From his seat in the front, Naru’s eyebrow twitched again. Lin simply sat there his eyes twinkling in slight amusement. He shot Naru a look as to say ‘You know she isn’t going to stop until you reply.’

Shooting the elder a glare, his eyebrow twitched.

“What Mai?” he asked.

Grinning, the girl perked up. “I’m bored” she complained.

Eye twitching again, the teen sighed in irritation. “And just what do you expect me to do about it.”

Crossing her arms, Mai glared at the back of his seat.

Internally thanking god, he went back to his book, determined to finish it before they reached the clients home.

Not even ten minutes later Naru heard the quiet sound of Mai’s head hitting the window as she fell asleep. He smiled slightly before his attention became focused on his book once more.

**Me: And there you have it. The next chapter**

**Mai: We hope you enjoyed it!**

**Me: Yup! I wrote this in just over 24 hours so it might be a little off but oh well**

**Naru: Idiot**

**Mai: That’s not nice!**

**Naru: I never said I was**

**Mai: *glares***

**Me: *sweatdrop* I already have the first 300-400 words for the next chapter so if you’re lucky they’ll be up by the end of the weekend.**

**John & Masako: We haven’t been in the story much but please read and review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: Hey guys! Here’s another chapter for you and it’s only been just over a week!**

**Mai: Shellsan apologises if the chapter seems a little off. She was having some trouble getting into the mood. It should flow a little better towards the end.**

**Naru: Idiot**

**Me: That’s not nice! You should do the disclaimer as an apology**

**Naru: Hn why should I**

**Me: *whispers in Naru’s ear***

**Naru: *smirks* Shellsan doesn’t own Ghost Hunt**

As the mansion approached in the distance, Naru looked back at Mai to see her still sleeping peacefully.

“You’ll have to wake her up. She won’t otherwise” Lin stated.

The younger rolled his eyes. “Obviously. I didn’t think you would want to do it anyway.”

Smirking, the Chinese man shook his head. “You’re right but apart from that I don’t think anyone other than you is capable of waking her up. Leaving out the option of slapping her of course,” he pointed out.

Naru internally flinched at the thought. He hated seeing Mai getting hurt, they all did. It was even worse when they were forced to inflict that pain themselves.

“It’s like you’re her prince from sleeping beauty” Lin muttered just loud enough for Naru to here while smirking slightly.

Naru glared at him causing the smirk to widen.

Huffing, Naru opted it to ignore Lin until they reached the end of the road. Chuckling at the childish action, the elder shook his head and brought the car to a stop. Both of them wasted no time getting out of the car.

“Let Jean know we’re here while I wake Mai” Naru ordered.

Rolling his eyes, Lin did as he was told, walking towards the front of the house.

Meanwhile, Naru walked over to the door behind his. Carefully, he opened the door, making sure that the sleeping girl didn’t fall out.

“Mai, you need to wake up,” he stated, shaking her gently.

Stirring slightly, Mai groaned. “Are we there?” she asked, her words slightly muffled by a yawn.

Naru scoffed, “yes now hurry up and get out. We have things to do” he commanded.

Nodding, Mai rubbed her eyes before undoing her seat belt and stepping out of the car. Stretching her arms out, she took this chance to have a quick look around. Her mouth dropped in awe as her eyes skimmed over her surroundings. It was exactly the same as in her dream- From the sparkling water to the moss on the walls.

“Stop admiring the view and start unloading.”

Mai turned to Naru and glared at him. “I can’t help it if the scene is so pretty!” she exclaimed.

Naru rolled his eyes, and walked around the back of the van.

Following after him, Mai sighed. “So where _is_ Lin anyway?” she inquired.

Naru grabbed a monitor and sighed, “while you were busy sleeping, he went to tell Jean that we’re here,” he explained.

In that moment you saw Lin walk out of the mansion. This time he wasn’t alone. Walking next to him was a woman who appeared to be in her late 40’s. She had short brown-black hair and dark brown eyes.

“Mai-chan, this is Jean, the client and an old family friend of the Davis’” the elder man introduced. Jean held her hand out to Mai. Grinning, Mai grabbed it, shaking her hand. “Hi, I’m Mai Taniyama. It’s nice to meet you.”

Jean smiled, “And you too,” she replied before turning to Naru.

“I thought you were bringing more people Oliver.”

Said boy pinched the bridge of his nose already annoyed by the mention of the rest of the team. “They should be here any minute now. Why don’t we start setting up base in the meantime” he suggested, mentally adding ‘and avoid getting stuck in there petty arguments’.

The woman smiled nodding, “Right this way.”

Walking off towards the house, the other three all picked up some equipment and began following after her.

The inside of the house was so different to the horrid room Mai had found herself in during the dream she had the day before. It had a classy feel to it. The walls were all a slightly creamy white and the floors were golden oak wood.

Jean led them down the short hall and the group found themselves in another room. To her left was a large spacious living room, complete with a large fire place and even bigger flat screen above it. To the left was a set of stairs. Near those stairs was a door. Smiling she pointed towards it. “You can set up in there. My daughter uses it as her room when she says here so it has a lot of power outlets you can use along with some couches. There’s also a bed in there so that someone can get some rest instead of spending the entire night awake staring at screens” she explained, shooting a pointed look towards Naru.

He just glared at her in return before nodding in slight thanks and entering the assigned base.

“Mai, you start setting up in here while Lin and I go get more equipment” Naru stated.

Mai pouted, “but I wanted to meet up with the guys” she muttered while moving to set up a shelf.

Her boss rolled his eyes, “Yes I know. That’s why you get to set up in here” he stated, flashing the brunette a smirk as he walked out of the room with Lin in tow.

Grumbling, she set to work not wishing to force the wrath of Naru upon herself.

Minutes later Mai heard loud shouting and grinned, finishing off the shelf. Turning to the door, she watched as Bou-san and Yasu entered the room, carrying monitors. Behind them was Ayako twiddling her nails.

“Why aren’t you helping you old hag” the monk complained, placing the monitor on one of the shelves.

As a result Ayako used a perfect hand to swing her purse at the monk.

“Who are you calling old? You’re the only ancient one here!” she yelled.

Mai stared at them in annoyance and before Naru could tell them to shut up she had already hit them both on the head.

“Can you not fight near expensive equipment? I do _not_ need to be paying out replacement fee’s thank-you very much” she lectured.

Ayako and Bou-san both looked at each other with a glare before looking down and sighing in acceptance. They didn’t feel like making Mai. The result wouldn’t be pretty.

Seeing them calm down, Mai grinned before noticing Naru looking at her with an eyebrow raised. Rolling her eyes she looked at John and noticed him still holding a monitor. Moving towards him she quickly took it from his hands and placed it with the others.

“Are you all going to stand there or help me set up?” she inquired.

With a sigh Naru moved to help, along with Lin.

Smiling in thanks, the trio began moving things around while the others stood around and –much to Naru’s irritation- chatted.

It was about ten minutes before the room was set up. That was when she got a better look around.

The walls of the room were actually black. When you walk into the room at first you just see a large U-shaped couch with a desk on the left of it. On the wall was a large TV. However if you turned to the left you would notice that the room then lowered a few steps into a sleeping area where there was a large bed with red sheets. The wall behind the bed was slightly different. It had red running along it to look similar to blood. Even though it was kind of creepy she also found it to be comforting for some reason.

Hearing a small knock at the door, Mai turned to see Jean enter the room. She smiled at the new arrivals.

“Hello. You all must be the rest of the team Oliver said would be arriving. I’m jean and you are?”

John smiled. “Ahh it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m John Brown, this is Masako Hara, Houshou Takigawa, Osamu Yasuhara and Ayako Matsuzaki” he introduced them.

“Uh so what’s with the creepy room if you don’t mind my asking?” Bou-san inquired sheepishly.

The elder woman laughed. “This is my daughter’s room for when she visits. She likes her room dark so she asked for her room to black. She also said she wanted to have a feature wall so I got it done as her coming home present. Sorry if it scares you a little but this room is most suited to your needs.”

Mai rolled her eyes and smiled at Jean. “I think the rooms amazing. But I also don’t think it’s finished just yet either.”

The woman nodded, “You’re right. It’s not quite finished but my daughter said she wants to do the final touches.”

“Never mind that! How can you find such a dark room _amazing_ ” her brother figure exclaimed.

Scoffing, the brunette crossed her arms and ignored him, chatting enthusiastically with Jean.

“I think Mai finds the room comforting” Yasu speculated.

Hearing the younger man’s words, Jean raised an eyebrow towards Mai, along with everyone else.

Masako scoffed, “how could _Mai_ find a room like _this_ comforting,” she stated in a condescending tone.

Yasu pushed his glasses up making them glint in reflection of the lights. “It reminds her of her room at home.”

“It does not.” Mai denied.

Yasu gave her a disbelieving look. “It’s almost exactly like your room back home. Yours just happens to have ocean blue instead of red.”

Mai sighed in annoyance. It wasn’t worth arguing over. “Whatever. Leave me be for a few minutes” she muttered, walking over to the bed and sitting on it crossed leg. The others watched as she calmed her breathing and evened it out.

John scratched the back of his head awkwardly. “We probably shouldn’t disturb her while she’s getting information” he stated.

Nodding in agreement, Bou-san turned to Naru. “So what are we going to do first Naru?” he asked.

“I want you and John to go set up the camera’s. Miss Matsuzaki, go with Miss Hara to do a walk around and see if you can sense any spirits. I don’t want anyone walking around alone. Is that understood?”

Murmurs of agreement sounded around the room as Bou-san and John walked off with the cameras. Masako and Ayako weren’t far behind them. Before Ayako left the room, she turned to Naru.

“Keep a close eye on Mai. No matter how much has changed, Mai is still Mai. At one point or another she’s going to wander off on her own. Try to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

With that said, the shrine maiden stalked off after Masako, easily catching up to her.

Naru sighed. As much as he hated to admit it she was right. He would have to make sure she didn’t do something too stupid.

Little did he know, Mai had heard the whole thing and was slightly frustrated. Opening her eyes, she groaned at the sudden light. It was clear that she wouldn’t be able to collect any information at the moment. There were too many interruptions and not enough silence. She could try again later that night when the others were sleeping.

“So boss, what am I going to do?” Yasu inquired from where he was sitting. If it weren’t for the fact that he was Naru, he might have jumped in surprise. He had completely forgotten Yasu was here. He was being unusually quiet.

Before Naru could give him something to do though, Mai was walking over to them from where the bed was situated. “You can come along with me. I have to do the temperature run down on the rooms and I’m not supposed to go around on my own” she stated, grabbing the clipboard from one of the shelves.

Yasu grinned, “Keen to get me alone, are we?” he joked.

The brunette rolled her eyes. “As matter of a fact I am,” before Yasu could reply she added, “I don’t want any witnesses when I put you in hospital.”

With that she stalked off towards the hall way, only stopping to turn and give the gaping men an irritated look. “Well are you coming or not Yasu. Hell Naru or Lin, I don’t care who comes but (hurry up). There’s a little girl missing and the last thing we need to be doing is wasting time” she exclaimed.

Yasu quickly snapped out of it, jogging to catch up to Mai while Naru and Lin were still in shock.

“Did she just beat Yasuhara in an argument?” Lin asked, more for himself than anyone else. It seemed almost impossible. Even Naru had trouble doing that but she acted as if it were easy. What did they miss while they were away?

Snapping out of it, Naru turned to Lin. “Call Madoka and see if she’s found anything about the family history of this place. Then I want you to pull up the blue prints for the mansion. If there’s one thing Mai was right about it was the lack of time.”

********************WiTh MaI********************

Mai sighed as she took down the eleventh temperature. How many rooms did this place need!? Yasu was thinking the same thing. They had been walking around for the past ten minutes and he was beginning to get bored.

Turning to Mai it was clear she was concentrating. He sighed. “Why did you have to drag me along?” he whined.

The brunette turned to Yasu and shot him an annoyed look. “Because I needed someone to come with me and there was no way I was taking Naru or Lin. Stop complaining” she grumbled.

Her partner in crime sighed, “Fine.”

They continued walking in silence until Yasu got bored and decided to try a new tactic. “Do you still like him?” he asked, mischief clear in his tone.

Almost instantly Mai’s cheeks turned slightly pink. “I don’t know what you’re talking about” she lied.

Yasu grinned. “Oh so you _don’t_ like Naru?” he inquired.

She smiled at him sadly. “No, I don’t like him” she agreed. _I love him_ she silently added in her mind.

The boy next to her was still surprised. She wasn’t lying but there had to be more to it than that. Surely she hadn’t gotten over him yet. It hadn’t been long enough… had it?

He shook such stupid thoughts from his head. Most definitely not. There was more to it than she was letting on and he was going to find out what. With the help of his partner in crime of course.

********************TiMe SkIpY********************

Roughly half an hour later everyone was back at base by now and Naru was clearly in a bad mood and no-one could figure it out why. Well, they had a feeling Mai knew but she wasn’t exactly in the sharing mood.

“Come on Mai” Bou-san whined, “I can feel Naru’s irritation from over here! Why is he in such a bad mood?”

The brunette sighed rubbing her temples, “Can’t you put two and two together?”

Masako scoffed, “Maybe you just don’t know” she voiced haughtily.

Rolling her eyes, Mai got up from her seat on the couch. Truth be told -she was beginning to get annoyed with the bad vibes he was giving off as well. Walking over to him, she put her hands on her hips.

Naru barely spared her a glace as he continued reading from his little black book. “Come on” she stated.

This time, he looked up at her curiously. “What do you mean ‘come on’?” he asked in annoyance.

Mai rolled her eyes. “We’re going to get you some tea.”

He looked at her in surprise before covering it quickly. “What does that have to do with me?”

The brunette could barely contain her annoyance. “I do believe it was you who set the rule that no-one was allowed to walk around by themselves. And I also believe that you’re the one in dire need of his favourite hot beverage so you can be the one to come with me” she explained.

Naru wanted to argue but he couldn’t think of anything to say. She was right for once. He _did_ need tea and it was him who needed the tea so it was logical that he should be the one to go. That didn’t stop him from attempting to rile her up.

“I never said that I needed tea.”

“You didn’t need to. You’re aura gave it away. It was like you were going to kill someone” Mai shot back.

Naru pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. “Fine” he caved, snapping his book closed and pushing himself off the seat.

He moved swiftly to the door and opened it, waiting for Mai to catch up before they walked straight ahead, turning to the left to find a kitchen and dining area. Sighing, Mai moved towards the kettle and filled it, setting it to boil.

She began looking through the cupboards to find the tea. However when she spotted it, it was up extremely high. The thought of asking Naru for help barely even entered her mind as she tried to reach up and grab it. She groaned when she just couldn’t reach it. She was about to climb up on the bench to grab it when she felt a warm body press against hers. Her breath hitched slightly as he spoke.

“Did you need some help?”

**Me: And there we have it. I hope you enjoyed this chapter**

**Mai: Shellsan wants to know if there was anything that you liked, didn’t like, thought didn’t work, something you want to happen**

**Naru: Or you could just ignore the idiots**

**Me and Mai: NARU!**

**John: … Please review**

**Me: *Nods* The more reviews the faster the update AND as a bonus we can have Madoka in the next chapter :D**

**Mai: Until next time**

**Me: Bye my lovelies~~~**


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: Hey everyone! Back with another chapter!**

**Mai: Yeah! And Shellsan still doesn’t own anything**

Mai shuddered. She didn’t think it was intentional but she could feel Naru’s breath ghosting over her skin.

“U-um th-thanks” she muttered quietly, trying not to let him see her blush as she turned her head slightly away from him. Sensing the movement Naru looked down at the girl. He smirked slightly when he noticed the pink tips of her ears.

Her blush darkened when she felt Naru move around, reaching over her again. “W-what are you doing?” she stuttered.

His smirk widened, _she really doesn’t know how cute she looks right now_ he thought, fumbling around before grabbing the sugar.

“You’re going to need this too aren’t you” he spoke, moving away from her only enough so that she could move around but not far enough away to make her comfortable. Placing both the tea and sugar on the counter, he smirked at the blush that still adorned her face.

She went to move around and make the tea but found it hard to do so no thanks to the closeness of Naru. “Can you move away?” she asked, slightly irritated. Naru smirked, “oh you don’t like me this close?”

The brunettes face flushed. “Th-that’s not- N-no I-I mean y-yes. Gah” she stuttered in frustration. The other teen smirked but moved away so that she could make his precious tea.

Mai sighed quietly in relief. ‘ _stupid narcissist, making me feel all flustered’_ she mentally grumbled as she prepared the tea, placing cups onto the tray. She turned around and held one out to Naru.

“Drink this now so that I can re-fill it _before_ we go back to base. Maybe then you’ll drink it slower” she mumbled, face still slightly red.

The boy reached over and grabbed the cup, his fingers brushing slightly against Mai’s causing a tingling sensation. He wasted no time at all taking a long sip of the warm beverage, enjoying the familiar taste earl grey.

Mai giggled in amusement at the content look on Naru’s face.

Naru looked down at her curiously with a raised eyebrow. “And just what –may I ask- is so funny?”

The petite girl grinned, “Nothing much. I just don’t think I ever see you look content except when you’re drinking tea. It’s fascinating but also annoying-“ she rambled, catching herself before she went too far and made a fool out of herself.

The man in front of her only seemed inquisitive and perhaps a little shocked.

“Annoying how?”

Mai blushed, “So have you finished drinking that cup?” she asked, changing the subject the best way she knew how. Naru glanced to realise he had –in fact- finished the drink. She gently grabbed the cup from his hands, placing it on the bench and moving around to make the second cup.

She worked in silence in the hopes that Naru would forget his earlier inquiry and just focus on the case for the time being.

It wasn’t long before she had tea placed on the tray and another cup for Naru. She passed him the tea again. “You can carry your own tea.”

Naru nodded absentmindedly.

Sighing, Mai picked up the tray and they began walking back to base. It wasn’t a particularly long walk but it was double the amount of time she wanted to spend with Naru. Speeding up slightly, she noticed Naru was still lost in thought.

“Naru” she spoke snapping him out of it.

“What Mai?”

The brunette rolled her eyes, “Well unless you want me to drop the tea I can’t open the door.”

Naru sighed, opening the door so that she could move in and place the tray onto the table.

Once she completed that task she collapsed onto the couch, sighing quietly. _‘If I could get some peace and quiet then maybe I could actually look for information’_ she thought. She was worried for the little girl that had been kidnapped. Reaching over the table she picked up her phone which she had placed there earlier. Quickly she unlocked it and clicked on an app.

Yesterday as soon as she found out about the child she had put a timer on to see how long the little girl had been missing roughly. [ _18:42:39_ ] it read. Mai sighed, _‘she’s probably been missing slightly longer than that too’_ she thought. Wasting no time she stood up causing everyone to look at her.

“Where are you going?” Naru asked.

Mai sighed, “Theres a little girl missing because she’s been kidnapped by an angry and highly abusive spirit. I’m not going to sit here and mess around waiting for some information to come to us.”

“And just what do you suppose we do?” Naru shot back, slightly annoyed.

The brunette sighed, “That’s the thing. You can’t do anything.”

“Then why-“

“Because I can” she immediately interrupted.

Naru’s eyes shot up. “How?”

Mai crossed her arms, “I’m not going to stand here and explain to you how my powers work or what I’m doing in the middle of a life threatening case. You can question me later, I however am going to go up to the little girls room to find out what happened and maybe where she was taken, we’re losing time. Every second I stand here talking to you is another second that girl is in danger.”

Her temporary boss blinked before running a hand through his hair. “You aren’t supposed to be walking around on your own” he stated pointedly.

The petite girl groaned in annoyance, looking around the room. Her eyes landed on Lin. _‘He’s quiet and doesn’t make me nervous… most of the time.’_

“I’ll take Lin with me,” she decided.

Said man’s head shot up from where he was working at the monitors. “Why me?” he asked curiously.

“I’ll explain as we walk. I don’t have time for this” Mai practically snapped.

“Alright” Naru conceded. Truth be told, he was also worried about Megan however Mai’s safety came before any of that.

Lin blinked before getting up without a word and following Mai out the door.

“Are you going to explain why you volunteered me?” he inquired.

The brunette rolled her eyes. “It’s not rocket science, the others are too loud” she stated.

“What about Masako and Naru? Neither of them are loud.”

Mai turned to look up at the Chinese man and smiled, “they’re both annoying” she stated without a second thought.

The look on her face was so innocent but her words held clear mirth at the statement. Lin couldn’t help but chuckle slightly at the girl’s antics. This girl who had –somehow- managed to weave herself into the lives of everyone, himself included. To this day he still wasn’t sure how it had happed, only aware of the fact that it had.

They walked in silence for a few more moments before Lin spoke again. “What exactly are you going to do? And don’t even try to give me any of the speech you gave Naru because I’m not buying it.”

From beside him, Mai mentally groaned. _‘Okay Mai calm down. It’s not like you didn’t expect someone to figure it out. Just tell him the truth and hope to god he doesn’t tell Naru until after the case’_ she mentally assured herself.

“I’m still waiting for an answer.”

The brunette snapped out of her thoughts and let out a deep breath. “You have to promise not to tell Naru. At least not until the end of the case.”

Lin stopped walking and looked down at her. “Ma-,” he began. Before he could finish so much as a word, Mai looked up at him. “You have to promise me or I’m not telling you anything.” She demanded, whipping around and walking ahead.

The Chinese man sighed. _‘If I go with Mai on this and don’t tell Naru then I could get I deep trouble but on the contrary if I let her tell me then at lease I can figure out a way to help her at one point or another…’_

Making up his mind, Lin quickly caught up to Mai. “Alright. You have my word but if I think you’re in too much danger then I’m getting you out of whatever you’re going to do” he warned.

“I’m afraid it’s not that simple. What I’m going to do is a form of astral projection… an extremely dangerous one.”

The elder looked down at her in confusion. “How is astral projection going to help find the little girl?” he asked.

Mai sighed, “First what I’m going to do it find something on hers in her room. Then I’m going to get a feel of her aura. Once I’ve done that I can search for her aura inside the house. After finding her aura I can astral project to where she is and try to find a way out –backtrack to where I am and if I’m lucky, get her out of there” she explained.

Lin nodded in understanding. “I get all of that but then how is it dangerous.”

The petite girl gave him a surprised look. “And here I was thinking you could figure out the dangerous parts yourself” she muttered.

“Mai, “ Lin warned, giving her a glare

She rolled her eyes, turning onto the next set of stairs that would lead to her destination. “Okay okay. When I'm not in my body it has no soul and the danger becomes that anyone or anything can possess it. If Ge-“ Mai caught herself before she could do anymore damage.

“U-umm if a spirit decided to come along and possess my body then I would have no-where for my soul to go back to her and I could end up wandering. The other dangerous part is worse though…”

Lin gave her a disbelieving look as if to say “there’s more?!”

Mai twiddled her fingers and pretended to kick an imaginary rock. “Uh-um-well you see…” she stuttered, “If the spirit catches me wandering around and attacks me, every hit I take –much like with strong connection dreams- will also hit my real body…”

The Chinese man next to her stopped dead in his tracks. How many risks was this girl going to make before she stopped? How many times does she have to hurt herself before she’s had enough. Was this some type of game to her or something? And just what was is that she was going to say before. If he didn’t know any better he would have guessed he was going to say Gene… Thoughts ran through his mind faster than a train but for some reason he couldn’t forget Gene’s name.

By this point Mai had also stopped, not daring to look up at Lin.

“Mai, before you were going to say something… what was it” _‘I hope I’m wrong.’_

The brunette’s body stiffened visibly and she felt as though the temperature had just dropped several degrees. “I want to lie to you. I want to pretend that the truth doesn’t exist but I have a feeling you wouldn’t buy it no matter what I said. Because of this I’ll give it to you straight. I was going to say Gene.”

**Me: So there it is. I know it’s shorter than normal**

**Mai: I’m so weird…**

**Me: uhhh and so Mai’s probably a little on the OOC side of things as it stands. It might be slightly more OOC than anticipated but her being slightly different is planned. If anyone has any questions as to why I’ll explain it to you**

**Naru: It’s obvious that you’re just making excuses**

**Me: And it’s obvious that you’re mean!**

**Mai: Until next time, please read and review!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: Hey guys! Heres the next chapter!**

**Mai: Shellsan owns nothing!**

Lin looked at her in shock before snapping out of it. “Gene passed over when we buried him. There’s no way. And besides, he wouldn’t possess you. That’s stupid” he denied.

Mai sighed and began walking again. “I am aware that you don’t want to believe me. I don’t want to believe me. The afterlife works in ways that you can even begin to comprehend. To pretend that he has left this world will do you no good. I can explain it to you at a later point however for the time being you can either believe me or you can deny the truth. The choice is yours to make. As for the topic of possession, if one ghost is using my body as a vessel then another ghost can’t possess it at the same time. It’s risky as he could use up a lot of my energy but it would be worse if my body were to be possessed by another spirit.”

The elder sighed, “Just so you know, you can be the one to explain to Naru what exactly you did and how dangerous it is along with the reason you know Gene hasn’t passed on” he warned.

On cue the brunette next to his pouted. “Fine” she relented, already knowing that arguing would do her no good. As it stands she was surprised that Lin hadn’t yelled at her for being so reckless. That’s not to say he won’t later but she was allowed to hope.

Arriving at the door to the girl’s room, Mai took a deep breath and opened the door. The room was like any little girls room. A bed in the corner, little my little ponies and stuffed toys littered on the ground, pink carpet, drawing pencils.

The petite girl walked over to the bed, taking a seat on the edge, Lin not too far behind.

“So how exactly does this work?” the Chinese man inquired, curious as to how she planned to do this.

Mai shot him an apologetic look. “Like this.”

~In BaSeZ~

Naru clenched his fists discreetly. He knew it was stupid to get jealous but he couldn’t help it. Of all the people she could have dragged along with her she chose _Lin_. I mean it’s not like he wanted Mai to drag him along with her… did he?

Shaking such ridiculous thoughts from his head he watched them go by on the cameras in the hall ways. It seemed like they were talking about something important. It was at that moment that he wished he had set up microphones in the halls so that he could hear what they were saying.

Once again he almost hit himself. He was beginning to sound as nosy as Madoka. He frowned at the thought.

“So what do we do now?” Bou-san asked, directing his question towards Naru.

Sighing, the young boss, turned around grabbing a stack of files. Moving over to the coffee table, he let them fall.

“You can start by looking for any important information that could help with the case” he stated. It was posed as an idea but you didn’t have to be a rocket scientist to know that it wasn’t a question, it was an order.

Getting up, Yasu grabbed a stack of the information and began to sift through, the others following suit.

Naru raised an eye at Bou-san and Ayako. “I thought you didn’t understand English?”

The priestess looked up from the page she was reading. “We can’t speak it but reading it isn’t a problem” she explained.

Nodding in understanding, Naru turned back to his sheet of paper.

“This is interesting” Yasu muttered when he came across some useful information.

Looking up at the young man, the raven motioned for him to continue. Shaking his head in agreement Yasu began to speak.

“Well here’s a newspaper article from back in 1957 documenting the birth of a daughter named Bianca. Turns out her parents’ names were Elizabeth Wadleigh and Richard Wadleigh. They were a well-known rich family with a lot of power. If I cross reference that information with the previous owners of this building they come up around that time period” he informed.

Naru sat in his thinking pose taking in the information he had just been given. “Alright, keep digging and see if you can find out anything else” he ordered, going back to the file he had been examining.

~BaCk WiTh LiN~

The Chinese man watched as her body fell backwards, falling onto the bed softly. He mentally cursed. He should have foreseen her doing something reckless like that. Groaning, moved Mai into a more comfortable position.

“I swear after this case I am going to give her the longest lecture” he muttered, secretly hoping she would hear it.

~WiTh MaI~

Mai was floating in her dreamscape, surrounded by different spirits. Closing her eyes she imagined the landscape changing. Opening her eyes again she found herself standing on green grass with flowers surrounding her and purple sky looming above her. Smiling, she sat down and crossed her legs. Focussing on the area around where her body laid, she tried to get a feel for the aura of the little girl. She giggled when she head Lin muttering and gulped when he mentioned a long lecture.

‘Focus Mai’ she scolded herself.

Re-focusing, she studied the aura. It was a light magenta colour and it felt innocent, as though nothing could touch it. Mai could also feel a growing sadness, a feeling of loneliness and longing.

Biting her lip, Mai sighed.

“And now for the hard part” she muttered.

Closing her eyes she concentrated on the house. Opening her eyes she could see every room with everyone in it. Looking around, she searched for the magenta aura. Noticing a room behind the fireplace, she narrowed her eyes. She walked –or rather- floated over to it.

“Interesting” Mai mumbled, moving to go down it. She stopped after she hit the third step. Shivers tore through her body and her eyes widened. Gasping, she moved away from the steps as fast as possible.

An aura as black as the night sky surrounded the area like a fog. Mai’s fists shook and her breathing became rapid. She could see the darkness taking over the area blocking any clear line of sight. Despite her mind willing her to run away, she felt herself moving towards the stairs.

If the spirit was residing here then the chances that she would find the little girl here were higher than ever. Every step lower, the darkness became even darker and thicker –if that was even possible. It wasn’t long before she couldn’t even see her own soul.

Mai could feel herself shaking, the cold, crippling fear she felt was almost enough to make her turn around but the moment she caught a glimpse of the light magenta aura and felt the sadness it resonated she knew that she couldn’t do it.

The steps soon ended and the brunette found herself moving towards a door. Opening the door Mai covered her mouth. The cold concrete floors and plain walls were exactly as she remembered but that wasn’t the cause of her disbelief. In the corner of the room, curled into a small ball covered in scratches and bruises – dirt covering her ripped clothing- was as small fragile body. What was probably once blonde hair was now the same as a light brown. The worst part of the scene were the small sobs that were racking through her body, tears falling to the ground in front of her.

The brunettes own eyes filled with tears at the sight. Without wasting another second, Mai snapped out of her shock and ran towards her. Checking over her minute body, she sighed when there were no extreme injuries. _Yet_

Leaning over, she picked up Megan’s tiny frame. The little girl looked up, tears stained face and dull brown eyes with dark circles around them met her own chocolate eyes.

“Wh-who are y-you?” the younger stuttered.

“Shhhh” she whispered, hugging the girl to her chest she prayed that Naru had figured out where the room was because if she wanted to get out of here alive with the girl, she was going to need help.

~BaCk In BaSeZ~

Naru sneezed. _‘I hope I’m not getting a cold_ ’ he thought. Looking over the page he had in his hand he sighed. _Nothing_. They had been looking for more information for the past hour but they had yet to find anything of use.

Groaning, Ayako dropped the file she was holding onto the useless pile. That was when he noticed it.

At the very bottom of the pile was a blueprint. Reaching over, he picked it up to see an old blueprint of the original house. Grabbing the current one Lin had gotten him earlier, he compared them.

Observing what he was doing, Yasu and Bou-san both went over to take a look.

“It looks like there’s a hidden room” the monk mused, looking at the large gap in the wall behind the fireplace.

Yasu nodded in agreement, “Now only to find out how to get into the room.”

Getting up, everyone made their way over out of the room. A minute later they were all in front of the fireplace situated in the large lounge room and attempting everything they could in order to open a secret door. They had looked for out of place seals, cracks or similar. They had looked for hollow parts of the wall. They had even checked to make sure nothing triggered it.

“Maybe the entrance is on the other side of the wall” Masako suggested. John nodded in agreement. The others looked up from what they were doing and decided it to follow suit. They were beginning to get too irritated to be of use anyway.

Going around the corner, they re-attempted everything they could think of until they gave up.

“What now?” Bou-san whined exasperated.

Naru’s hand came up to his face in a thinking pose. There could be many ways to hide a trigger so where were they hiding it this time? That’s when he remembered something Mai had told him a while back.

_~Flashback~_

_It was the day after the Mai had been possessed and she was with Naru and Lin in the lounge area of the office. She had managed to get them both out of their offices so that she could find out what had happened while she had been possessed. At first they had been reluctant but she was used to playing this game, using any means necessary to win._

_“Oh come on Naru. Besides after you guys tell me what happened while I was possessed I can tell you what happened to_ me _while I was being possessed” she coaxed._

_The brunette grinned knowing she had won this argument when both of them sighed. She knew it wasn’t the smartest thing to play on Naru’s scientific urges but she wanted to find out what was going on during that time._

_Mai served them all some tea and Naru began to explain what had happened._

_“Kenji ran off after that and was hiding and we didn’t know where to find him. We tried looking everywhere and then Takigawa noticed that they were only looking in the places they could access, places not high up. So after that realisation, we went outside to look for you. John guessed you would have tried to climb a tree.”_

_His assistant nodded but didn’t seem the least bit surprised._

_“Well of course” she stated._

_Naru raised an eyebrow at her. “Are you trying to say you would have looked there first?”_

_Mai grinned, “Of course. While you were busy reading books I was playing outside. The first rule of hide and go seek is that the best hiding place is in plain sight. Not just places up high but also places that seem impossible or that people easily look past. Like for example when looking for where I or Kenji was hiding the children probably checked under the beds but I bet they never checked under the covers on the beds” she explained._

_~Flashback End~_

“The best place is in plain sight” he muttered. That’s when he saw it. In the very corner of the corridor was a power outlet. Walking over to it, he crouched down examining it. On the side there was a small button that was hard to spot – especially from far away. Pressing it, the pad moved to the side to reveal a keyhole.

From behind him he heard Ayako moan in annoyance. “Great so we know where the opening place is we need to find a key” she grumbled.

He didn’t say it aloud but he had to agree. This was becoming more and more irritating. He just wanted to find Megan already.

“Spread out in the immediate vicinity. Richard wouldn’t have hidden the key too far from the panel. He’d want easy access.

 As they spread out, the young boss looked around for somewhere to look.

John and Masako were checking the walls for any hidden spaces, Bou-san and Ayako were looking at the books in a nearby bookshelf. After surveying the area he decided to check that paintings on the wall with Yasu.

As he did that, a certain priest caught a glimpse of something shiny but slightly rusted. Moving over to the fireplace he saw it again.

“Guys, I think I found it” he claimed.

The others soon made their way over to the fire place.

“Go ask Jean for some of the fireplace tongs” Naru ordered him. Nodding, John ran off to find her.

He came back not long after and handed them to Bou-san.

After getting an affirmative he reached in and picked up the key. “You guys might want to stand back” he warned, happy when they all took a few steps backwards. Carefully he moved to place the small key in the metal bowl of water on the ground.

“We have to wait a few minutes for the key to cool before we can open the door or we might ruin it” Naru stated. At least they had the key now.

~BaCk WiTh MaI~

Mai panted, looking around. She had been searching for a way to get out of the current area for more than half an hour. She needed to get out soon too. Her abilities were already in overdrive. ‘ _There has to be a way to get out of this wretched place because I really don’t have the energy to fight off an angry and abusive spirit right now’_ Mai thought, groaning in frustration. She glanced at the girl who had fallen asleep in her arms. Her body was thinner than healthy and her features were impossibly pale.

Looking up at the stairs she gulped. The dark mass that was the spirit was still there and it obviously wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Taking one more glace down at Megan she steeled herself. She was just going to have to try and make it through the mass without dying.

Clenching her teeth to stop herself from screaming and waking the girl in her arms, Mai took a single step, and then another, and another. Her breath came out rapid and quiet as she slowly got closer and closer to the spirit.

“How dare you” the spirit growled, black mass revealing a distorted males face. Its eyes glared at her.

The brunette couldn’t help but hiss at it. “How dare I? You took an innocent little girl hostage! You beat this poor family! They’re terrified!”

Its eyes narrowed even more and Mai quickly realised her mistake. Cursing her inability to keep her mouth shut she raced up the last of the stairs, biting her lip when the mass made small cuts into her back as she shielded Megan.

If the cuts that were sure to have appeared on her real body weren’t enough the brunette felt the body she was protecting begin to shake. She must’ve awoken from being jostled so much. Sprinting over to the corner of the room, Mai placed the little girl on the ground curled up behind her. The pitch black shadow loomed close to Mai, threatening to harm her.

“Give me the girl and perhaps you may survive.”

The petite girl shook her head rapidly. “There’s no chance. I would never. Just try and kill me. I bet you don’t have what it takes.”

The spirit of Richard bared its teeth and hissed at her words. “I could definitely kill you, just like all those other girls” he stated.

Mai gagged at the haughty tone his voice had taken on. It was as if he was proud of the things he had done to those women. It disgusted her. _‘What’s with this guy?’_ Mai mentally screamed, feeling another cut tear through her leg.

It was beginning to seem impossible when Mai heard it. Voices from _outside_. _‘If I can just stall them…’_ she thought.

Just as the spirit moved to make another hit, the brunette put her hands up. “Wait! If you kill me then I can come back as a spirit and as a spirit I can oppose you. I thought someone who had been a spirit for so many years would know that a dead spirit can become a guardian. If I chose to become a guardian for this girl I could place a barrier around her and then you couldn’t be within a metre of her” she explained.

Richard’s spirit had stopped to listen to what she had to see and seemed to be contemplating it. “If I killed you you’d do that?  Why? You don’t know this girl - you have nothing to do with her.”

Mai inwardly cheered, she had sparked his interest… now just too keep it.

“Why not? I’ve already protected her this far. If I were going to die protecting her I would at least make sure that I completed the job properly” she explained.

The spirit nodded in understanding before he glared at her realising what she’d done.

“You bitch! How dare you do that?! What did you think? That if you made me wait then someone would save you? Foolish girl! No-one knows this room exists other than me.” He laughed sinisterly, showing Mai his sharp in-humane teeth once again.

He moved towards her again, intending to kill her. “I don’t know if you could protect her but I think I’ll take my chances” he laughed.

Slowly he began to build up his power. Mai felt his aura spike and surround her. Taking a step back to make sure Megan’s body was completely protected she fixed her gaze on the increasing mass.

It was just about to leap at her when the walls began to rumble. The corner where they were was directly across from the door.

**Me: So there it is! It’s a lot longer than usual I even exceeded 3000 words as an apology for the previous short chapter**

**Mai: Originally this was going to be posted sooner since Mai wanted the chapter to be posted before it had been a week but she decided to make it longer**

**John: She also wishes to thank everyone for their continued support and the reviews you leave. They make her day**

**Me: They really do~ To all the guests that have ever reviewed and read my stories you guys should get an account. You don’t have to but I – like many other writers- like to thank the reviewers through PM and sometimes continue to chat~ You don’t necessarily need to write to be part of the ff.net society after all~**

**Naru: Just stop with this long authors note. No-one cares**

**Me: *sticks out tongue* be that way then. Anywho I love you all and I hope you continue to support this fanfiction**


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: Hey guys! I’m baaaaaack**

**Naru: Took you long enough**

**Me: *cries* I’m sorry!!!!! Please enjoy this chapter which I dedicate to foxchic1 for messaging me personally and reminding me to get this chapter done for all of my lovely reviewers**

**Mai: On with the chapter!**

The spirit looked over at them. “How the hell” he muttered.

Making a quick decision, the brunette turned around, picked Megan up and bolted for the door. Using the distraction she managed to make it half way across the room before the spirit processed what was going on. Screaming at the trick he lunged at Mai. The brunette managed to dodge the attack by a millimetre but looked up to see Bou-san along with the others just standing there is shock. They seemed too surprised to move. Mentally cursing she shot them a glare that would rival Naru’s.

“Start chanting you idiots! Or would you rather I die here!” she screamed at them, running as fast as she could. Her soul burned as the cuts that she had been hit with bled. She knew Lin was probably going to do more than lecture her for this once she returned to her body.

When Mai finally reached them Bou-san had started chanting the immovable one and Ayako was doing the nine cuts. She panted as Naru glared at her. He went to say something but she shook her head. “I’ll explain later, I need to return to my body. Take Megan” she muttered tiredly.

His mouth snapped closed and he took the small girl from her, shooting her a glare. Whether it was from confusion or irritation –she wasn’t sure.

“What do you-“Naru’s question was cut off as Mai closed her eyes and searched for her body to re-connect. Seconds later, she was gone leaving the others downstairs to fend off the angry spirit for a couple minutes.

Waking up she noticed that Lin looked almost normal. That was until she coughed and she had a chance to see his eyes. They were furious and worried. Just like Naru, he went to say something.

The brunette cut him off before he could start though, “Don’t you start too. I’ll explain later. I don’t think you want me to pass out in the middle of your lecture.” She managed a small weak smile at him but it was clear she was in pain.

Pushing herself up, she winced as the cuts on her back stretched.

“I hope I don’t need stitches on some of these” she muttered.

The Chinese man gave her a disapproving look. “Let’s get you down stairs and see if Miss Matsuzaki can do anything for you” he stated, helping her up.

Mai nodded in agreement, biting her lip to try and take her mind off the pain. “Remind me why the hell I thought that was a good idea?”

Lin couldn’t help but chuckle at her. “I have no idea why you thought it was a good idea. In fact, it was a stupid Idea and you never should have attempted it” he stated, giving her a glare that made the one Naru had given her moments ago seem like a smile.

She sighed. “I know” she muttered quietly, “but you should go. I’ll meet you back in base but they need your help downstairs with that spirit.”

The Chinese man hesitated. “You aren’t supposed to be anywhere alone.”

Mai scoffed, “Too bad, get going before Naru gets hurt. He’s your first priority.”

Sighing, the elder nodded, running off without her. The brunette waited until he was gone before she collapsed to the ground, leaning against the wall and breathing heavily. She had used way too much PK and she wasn’t sure how much longer she could stay awake. On top of that, all previous adrenaline left her system and the impact of what she had just done hit her with full force. Tears welled in her eyes, partly because of relief, anger and some because of pain.

~WiTh ThE OtHeRsZ~

Lin had reached them just as the spirit was getting ready to make a major blow. A high pitched whistle was all that his shiki needed before they were attacking the spirit. “Everyone back to base” Naru ordered, moving down the hall while the ghost was busy.

No-one dared argue, following after him at a quick pace.

When they reached base, Ayako re-enforced the charms before looking over Megan and sighing in relief. The little girl seemed to be fine, just passed out from stress. Laying the girl on the couch, she looked around. “Where’s Mai?”

Lin mentally cursed and was about to go after the brunette when he heard a slightly crash. Naru was first to rush out, the others following soon after.

Looking down they realised what the commotion was. Mai had managed to make her way to the outside of the base but had fallen asleep at the final part.

Sighing, Bou-san took it upon himself to lift the petite girl up and carry her into their base, placing her gently on the bed.

Ayako quickly checked over her wounds and sighed.

“How is she?” John inquired, worried for the smaller girl.

The shrine maiden looked up at him. “Well some of these cuts are extremely deep and might have to get stitches but other than that she should be fine. It’s nothing she hasn’t had before” she assured the priest.

Almost everyone relaxed at that.

Naru shot a glare at Lin. “What exactly happened. I thought she was gathering information” he accused.

The Chinese man mentally glared at the brunette for not being awake. “You can ask Mai when she wakes up.”

The young boss went to argue but decided against it. That way he could kill two birds with one stone when scolding her.

It was about half an hour later when Mai woke up. Groaning at the sudden brightness her eyes snapped closed again. The next time she made sure to open them slowly opened. Momentarily forgetting her injuries, she tried to sit up only to hiss and fall back down again.

The other’s who had been sitting on the couch and chatting, turned around to look at her.

Sighing, Ayako shook her head at Mai. “Stop moving around, you’ll hurt your wounds. You already need some stitches” she scolded.

The brunette let out a groan of annoyance. “Are you _sure_ I need them?”

The stern look she got in return was all she needed to know.

“So Mai, would you like to explain why exactly you were in that room when you were supposed to be collecting information?”

She snapped her head to the side when she heard Naru’s cold voice. If it weren’t for her current position she would have shrunk back against the glare he was giving her.

Gulping, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath to try and calm the nerves he was making her feel. The bed vibrated slightly under her making her concentrate more. Opening her eyes again, she nearly screamed in surprise. He was standing above her, glare even harsher –if that was possible.

“I’m still waiting for an answer.”

“W-well I knew I could help M-megan a-and I didn’t want t-to leave her a-any longer than necessary…” she managed to stutter out quietly.

Her temporary boss sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Mai laid there awkwardly waiting for the screaming and shouting that was sure to be bombarded by only to blink in shock as everyone rushed over to her asking if she was okay.

Bou-san attempted to pick her up into a hug only to pause and think better of it, opting to ruffle her hair instead. “You gave us quite the scare” he accused her.

The brunette gave him a sheepish look, “Sorry” she apologised.

Ayako sighed from next to him. “I’d lecture you but I don’t think you’d listen to me” she stated before gesturing to everyone but Naru, “and I doubt you’ll listen to them either.”

Mai grinned at her. “I probably wouldn’t” she agreed with a sheepish grin. She chose not to comment on the fact that Naru hadn’t been included in the generalisation.

Naru seemed to be getting more and more irritated by the second and finally he snapped. “What happened out there? What did you do? How did you do that? Was that an increase in your abilities? Why didn’t you feel it necessary to inform me of your plans?”

He fired question after question at the poor girl and she found a headache forming as she tried to process all of them. Luckily, her resident doctor seemed to notice and shot him a glare. “Mai can answer your questions later” she stated, her voice leaving no room for argument.

Said girl gave Ayako a tired smile of thanks receiving a smile in return before she felt herself fall asleep once more.

“Shouldn’t we focus on exorcizing the spirit now?” John asked quietly, careful not to wake Mai.

Masako nodded from next to him looking paler then usual –if that’s even possible. “I agree. I’m at my limit, the spirits anger is rising and it’s beginning to affect me. The sooner we leave this house the better.”

Naru nodded in understanding before looking over at Bou-san. “Are you prepared to do an exorcism?” he inquired.

The monk nodded. “I’d like to have John there with me too. This spirit is extremely angry and I’m not sure how much strength I have back at this point.”

Naru nodded in consent. “Alright. Use the walkie-talkie to contact base once you’re ready to begin.”

Bou-san and John both nodded before going off to get themselves ready.

~TiMe SkIpY~

It had been fifteen minutes since John and Bou-san had left to get ready before they notified Naru that they were ready.

“Alright, begin” Naru stated, standing in front of the monitors to watch the exorcism take place. Lin and everyone else crowded around similarly.

_“Naumaku sanmanda bazara dan kan”_

_“In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God.”_

A loud screech echoed around the house but both Bou-san and John remained calm and inexpressive, continuing the exorcism without a second thought. It dragged on slowly, the screams of Wadleigh encasing the entire house.

Moments later, the shrill sound stopped and the screaming was gone.

Masako sighed in relief. “He’s gone” she whispered.

The team let out a sigh of relief that they didn’t realise they were holding. Seconds later there was a running sound and the door opened.

Everyone jumped and turned around to see Jean standing there panting. “Wh-what was that?”

Bou-san shot her an apologetic look. “Sorry. I guess in all the excitement we forgot to inform you of our plans to exorcize the spirit…” he trailed off.

The woman gave him a surprised look before she shook her head sighing. “Enough of that I don’t want to know what happened. Just tell me two things” she began, “Is my daughter safe and that the spirit will never bother my family again.”

John offered her a smile. “Megan is resting on the bed next to Mai and the spirit will not be coming back.” He promised.

Jean nodded in acceptance after a few moments. “In that case, stop stressing so much!” she exclaimed with a happy look.

Everyone blinked a few times at the sudden change in demeanour before grinning.

“So who’s going to wake up Mai?” Ayako asked looking around the room.

Their client raised an eyebrow at them. “Wake her up?” she inquired.

Bou-san nodded. “Yeah. She was the one who rescued your daughter. But while doing so she used up too much of her spiritual energy so she’s been resting for a while now. But since the exorcism is finished… we’re going to have to wake her up.”

Jean was quiet as she took in the explanation before her eyes narrowed. “Was she hurt?”

She looked towards Naru and Lin for an explanation. If they were worried neither showed it.

“Mai sustained a few minor injuries.”

The look Naru got was anything but happy. “So do tell me why you think you’re going _anywhere_ without her having rested and at least started the healing process?” she asked.

Naru equalled her look with a slight glare of his own.

“We have to get Mai treatment for her wounds, some of them were deep enough to require stitches” he countered.

Jean looked at him for a few moments before sighing. “Then you can leave _after_ she wakes up, without interference. If that is before tomorrow then you aren’t going yet though, regardless. I don’t want you driving around at these times. You’re staying the night.” she stated, leaving no room for argument.

Nodding, the young boss gave into her demands and decided to sit down and read.

Yasu grinned cheekily and walked over to the corner of the room where his conversation wouldn’t he heard. Pulling out the phone he quickly dialled Madoka’s number.

After the second ring she picked up.

_“Hello?”_

“Hey. I have some confusing info about a certain brunette and her feelings towards the narcissist.”

_“Oh?” her voice was excited, she would probably squeal if she could. “Do tell. We might be able to make sense of it if we work together.”_

Yasu grinned, “That’s what I was hoping for. You see I got a few minutes with Mai alone earlier and I brought up the subject of Naru and her feelings.”

_“What’s so confusing then?”_

“That’s where it gets complicated. She told me that she didn’t like him.”

On the other end, the pink haired woman’s eyes crinkled in thought. _“Was she lying?”_

“That’s where it gets worse. She wasn’t lying. Her ears didn’t go red, she looked me in the eyes and she wasn’t overly nervous or guilty. Nothing out of the ordinary!” he whined.

Madoka hummed in thought over the other end. _“Well she couldn’t be over him already, at least I hope not because that would ruin everything.”_

He couldn’t agree more. “There has to be something we’re missing.”

Yasu could practically here the wheels in Madoka’s head turning, her thoughts trying to process the information and try to understand what was going on. _“Well we’ll figure it out the next time we see her. Speaking of which when do you guys think you’ll be finished the case?”_

“We’ve finished. Mai managed to move things along a fair bit. Although most of us probably wished she didn’t but we can discuss that later.”

A surprised gasp was heard from the other end. _“You mean you’ve already finished. I thought it would take longer. But isn’t it getting a bit late to head back now? Apart from that, what do you mean Mai moved things along? Is she hurt? What happened?”_

The younger man laughed at her rambling. “Mai will be fine. I believe Mrs Baker is insisting we stay the night and I don’t think Naru is able to disagree so we’ll most likely head back tomorrow. When we get back you can join the interrogation team and ask Mai yourself. After she’s been fixed up a bit first of course. It seems Miss Matsuzaki has decided that most of the cuts Mai received will heal with time but that a few of them will need some stitches. We’ll explain more later.” Yasu explained.

Before Madoka could argue anymore he quickly said goodbye and ended the call. He sighed turning to where everyone was crowded at the couches. He glanced over at Mai and grinned when he noticed that she wasn’t actually sleeping now.

If the others were paying attention they would have noticed that Mai’s breathing was no longer even and that her eyes were slightly open.

Making sure no-one was paying attention to him, he slipped over to where Mai was. Sitting at the end of the bed, he looked at her through the corner of his eyes. “How are you feeling?” he muttered quietly.

She didn’t seem surprised that he had realised. Sighing, she swallowed thickly. “I’m still exhausted. Maybe I over did it a bit…” she grumbled in an equally quiet voice.

Yasu let out a small laugh. “I’d say that you underestimated that. You definitely over did it. But since you already did it, we’re going to have to add these to the current results from the test that I _have_ managed to get you to let me do. We might be able to find a way to improve your length of time.”

Mai gave him a slight smile. “Just add it to the list of things. At the moment I have Naru and Lin both waiting in line to yell at me. Behind them is probably Madoka when she finds out. After that I’m going to have to run through explanations of the technique to Naru and most likely professor Davis. Then you can get the results” she listed.

He pouted. “But that’s going to take forever” he whined.

The brunette made a move similar to that of a shrug. “I can’t help that.”

**Me: Yes I am aware that my exorcism sucked and that I really need to review how to write such scenes**

**Mai: If anyone had any tips and tricks to help Shellsan along she would really appreciate it**

**Naru: Idiot**

**Me: *Cries***

**Mai: That’s mean!!! Apologise! Shellsan tried her best**

**Naru: *Ignores***

**Me: *Sniffles* Please read and review. Thank-you to all of my reviewers. I try to message you all  but sometimes of forget so here is me personally thanking you :)**


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that this story is posted on some other sites, which you can find the links to the accounts on my BIO. If you see it being used anywhere else i would appreciate the knowledge.
> 
> Also I am quite new to this site so I am still unsure of how things work so any useful information if i'm doing something wrong is welcome.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism however if you wish to inform me that my story is bad then i would appreciate it if you either A) Tell me why it's bad or B) Keep the thought to yourself.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

**Me: Hey guys**

**Mai: You’re back again!**

**Me: Yup, and with the latest chapter. This is the longest one I’ve written yet**

**Naru: Then stop talking and let them read it**

**Me: *huffs***

It was about an hour later when the others finally noticed that Mai was awake. It probably would have been longer but Yasu made a joke and the brunette couldn’t help but burst into a painful fit of giggles.

“Mai!” a certain monk shouted, rushing over to her. If it weren’t for Ayako he surely would have hugged her half to death.

“How are you feeling?” she inquired, going into full doctor mode, checking cuts to make sure that they weren’t getting infected and changing the bandages.

Mai grinned. “Good as new.”

She was forced to retract this statement when Ayako placed a bit more pressure to one the cuts that would require her to get stitches and she hissed.

Yasu snickered. “Oh yes Mai, you’re _better than ever_ ” he mocked.

The brunette merely pocked her tongue out at him.

“ _Akito_ ” he reminded her.

Flushing Mai looked away from him. “Jerk” she mumbled.

He chuckled and placed his hands up in mock surrender.

“Akito? Wasn’t that-“ Bou-san started before he was shut up by a sharp hit. He turned to yell at Ayako only to find that it was Mai who had stolen her bag and hit him with it.

“What was that for?” he whined childishly.

This time it was the miko that hit him. “Idiot” she grumbled.

The monk pouted but daren’t argue for fear of being hit once more. If only he could get used to her hits, but alas it seemed that she had once again added more power to her blows. He quietly mused over what she was _keeping_ in there that cause him so much pain but stopped with a warning look from his fiancé.

“Oh yeah” Mai stated in surprise, “When are we leaving?”

Naru glanced up from where he was still reading at the question. “Tomorrow” he answered before looking back down at his little black book.

She stared at him for a few minutes before she giggled.

Glancing up at her he shot her a glare. “What are you laughing about?” he asked in a miffed voice.

Her giggles turned into laughter at her revelation. “N-nothing” she stuttered through giggles.

“What’s so funny?” John asked trying to figure out why the brunette was laughing so hard. He was just as confused as everyone else.

From over in his seat, Lin chuckled mentally. It only took her a few minutes to figure out what was going on. He had to hand it to the petite girl, she could certainly read people.

Mai contemplated answering him but was saved the hassle when Jean came in announcing that dinner was ready.

Several cheers resounded around the room and they were quick to rush out the door.

Naturally because she was injured Mai took a bit to move and swing her legs around the bed. Slowly she got up. Wobbling slightly she steadied herself and moved towards the door.

Before she walked out though she turned to Naru. “You know, the look you make when your sulking is cute” she teased before moving as fast as she could out of the door.

Meanwhile Naru blinked in surprised before scowling. This girl…

Sighing he followed her out of the room. He would have plenty of chances to get her back. She was after all, still a klutz. Smirking at the thought and in a significantly better mood he ignored the feelings stirring in his chest. They weren’t important at the current moment.

When he reached the large dining room he was greeted by the sight of everyone sitting down chatting and fussing over Mai as she sat down, leaning forward to avoid brushing against her bandages lest they begin to bleed again.

Making his way over to an empty seat opposite her, he ignored the looks he was given and began to eat the meal that had been set out for them.

It was an ultimately uneventful dinner and they all seemed extremely tired.

As soon as everyone finished Jean shooed them off. “Oliver your room is the same as always. Lin’s in next to you, would you mind showing him?”

Naru nodded and headed towards the stair case to head up the upstairs rooms.

The woman turned to the rest of the group and sighed. “Mai, you can have the room that you’re using for base to sleep in. Ayako, Takigawa and John, if you would follow me your rooms are this way.”

Ayako turned to Mai and gave her a stern look, “Be careful” she warned before following after Jean along with John and Bou-san.

Sighing the brunette turned around and began to make some tea for herself. She sighed, breathing deeply in the silence. Normally she didn’t like the silence but at the moment it was peaceful and much appreciated.

Moments later, she had a steaming cup of tea in her hand and was making her way towards the room she was assigned. Opening the door she placed the tea on the coffee table and sat down on the plush couch.

Relaxing her body she couldn’t help but feel happy about the current arrangement. Her happiness however, was short lived as she took a sip of her tea just as Naru walked into base. He didn’t acknowledge her presence so she just picked up a book from on the table and opened it to a random page, letting her eyes flick over the information that was presented.

Taking another long sip she sighed.

Her temporary boss glared at the satisfaction she got from having tea while he didn’t have any.

Mai rolled her eyes at the look. “If you wanted some you could have asked. I would have made you a cup” she stated.

Naru gave her what was probably supposed to be a glare but she could clearly see the hope in his eyes. It figures that he would go through tea withdrawal. Honestly she had no clue how he managed to survive when he wasn’t around. Did he ask Luella to make him tea?

She shook the thought from her head and stood up from her seat with her now empty cup. “You coming with me or are you going to sit there and act like you’re reading that book?”

His gaze snapped up to Mai and he closed the book.  Getting up he made his way to the door and opened it. Mai followed him not far behind as they walked in complete silence. It wasn’t uncomfortable but it wasn’t comfortable either… perhaps tense?

When they reached the kitchen Mai put the kettle on again and began to prepare more tea.

Neither said anything until she finished making Naru’s cup and refilling her own. Turning around he handed it to her.

He merely nodded and took it.

Mai let out a frustrated groan. “Why aren’t you talking to me?” she demanded.

Naru raised an eyebrow at her with a slightly irritated look. “Do you want me to start lecturing you now because i’m so close. The only reason I haven’t yet is because Miss Matsuzaki said to let you rest because you were going to need it. I decided that would be better but I’m reaching my limit Mai. Of all the stupid things you could have done” he growled becoming more and more angry.

The petite girl gulped. Now that she thought about it he didn’t really know much about what she did but he was this angry. She shivered thinking about how they were going to react after they found out what it was she had actually done.

They were not going to be happy.

Nodding mutely the girl turned heel and began walking towards the base. She suddenly felt very tired.

Naru seemed to have the same idea because instead of following her he turned around and made his way towards his own room.

Letting out a breath of air she quickly calmed herself with a sip of her tea.

After finishing her tea, Mai climbed into the bed and quickly fell asleep.

It was still early when she was woken by movement in the base.

Warily she opened her eyes slowly, glancing at the clock. She groaned seeing the flashing numbers 6:30.

Looking around she noticed the source of the noise was Lin and Naru who were beginning to pack things up.

Waiting until they left the room again she forced herself into a sitting position and slowly got out of bed, wincing as the cuts on her back stretched in defiance. Stopping for a second she forced herself onto her feet and relaxed.

Making her way out of the room she quickly moved towards the kitchen. Knowing those two they probably hadn’t even thought of making themselves something warm and the sun was exactly strong at this time.

Mai made the tea swiftly and carried it back towards the base. Just as she was entering the hall the door opened and Naru came out.

He narrowed his eyes at her. “What are you doing up?”

The brunette rolled her eyes, “You and Lin aren’t exactly quiet,” she explained motioning for him to take a cup from the tray.

Naru picked one up and took a sip before stepping out of the way of the door. Obviously he had decided that her explanation was sufficient enough.

Walking inside she spotted Lin wrapping up some of the chords.

“You should have some tea” she stated placing the tray on the coffee table and picking up her cup.

The Chinese man turned to her and sighed. “Naru wants to be out of here as soon as everyone has had breakfast. I don’t have time to sit and drink tea” he denied.

Mai scoffed, “Naru has time to drink tea while working so you do too. Besides, no-one told you to sit.”

He sighed but relented and moved to pick up the cup that was left on the tray. “Thank-you” he expressed.

Looking at him she smiled, “No problem. I figured you two would start working without anything in your stomachs. This should at least help until you can eat something proper.”

Lin opened his mouth to speak but Mai shot him a glare and cut him off. “And you will be eating breakfast.”

Sighing the elder nodded before turning back to his work, placing his half empty cup back on the table so he could use both hands.

The brunette gave him a satisfied look before settling to finish drinking her tea.

Half an hour passed before long and soon everyone was beginning to wake –much to the dismay of Mai who couldn’t understand how anyone would be up this early.

John was first to enter base and smiled when he saw a tired Mai sitting on the couch watching an episode of the English dubbed version of fruits basket.

“Mornin’ Mai” he greeted.

Mai turned to him and grinned. “Good morning John. Did you want some tea?” she asked.

He nodded, “Yes please, I think the others will be up soon too.”

The brunette laughed slightly. “I’ll just grab some cups and put the tea into a pot.”

Smiling the priest nodded. “That might be best” he agreed.

Walking out of the room she made her way back to the kitchen and quickly made up a pot of tea and grabbed a few extra cups before turning around and heading back to base once more.

When Mai re-entered the room she found that Masako and Bou-san were also awake now.

“Good morning Mai” Ayako greeted. Masako just nodded towards her.

She grinned at them and placed the tea on the table before pouring out some cups and handing them around. “I’m guessing Ayako and Yasu are still sleeping then” she mused before sighing, “They really are the only sane ones.”

Bou-san rolled his eyes and Masako hid a smirk. “I don’t think sane is the word anyone would use to describe Yasuhara” she noted.

Laughing Mai nodded, “That’s true.”

It wasn’t long before everyone joined in with her laughter although it was short lived as Lin and Naru made their way back into base to pick up the last of the monitors.

“If you have time to sit around and laugh about things then why is it that there is still things that need packing up?” Naru asked coldly.

Bou-san gulped. “Ah sorry Naru, I’ll do it now.”

Moving quickly, the monk picked up the monitor and made his way towards the door.

Just as he was about to open it he felt someone collide with him.

“Watch where you’re going” grumbled Ayako, obviously unhappy that she was awake at such a time.

The monk blinked before grinning. “What are you talking about old lady? Are you getting so old that you need a lot of sleep after such a small amount of work” he teased.

Instead of the usual banter she just brushed past him and continued on her way to her seat.

Sighing in disappointment, Bou-san set off to do the task he was assigned.

Mai rolled her eyes at the pair before squealing as Yasu leapt onto her lap. “Yasu!” she exclaimed in annoyance.

He looked up at her and grinned. “Good morning my dear Mai! How do you feel today?”

Huffing brunette tried to push him off of her. “I would feel much better if you weren’t sitting on my lap. Go find a seat.” She grumbled.

Yasu pouted, “But Mai” he whined, “another seat isn’t nearly as comfortable as my love!” he exclaimed dramatically, flaring his arms around to prove his point.

Ducking to avoid one of her arms, she shot him an exasperated look. “I thought Bou-san was your ‘true love’ your ‘soul mate’.”

He grinned, “Is that jealousy I hear?”

“Not a chance in hell.”

“You didn’t even think about it before you said it. How cruel,” Yasu sighed before blinking when he found himself looking up at the ceiling. “What was that for?” he asked pouting as he sat up.

Mai grinned, “I did tell you to get off of me didn’t I? Not all of my threats are empty you know” she pointed out.

Yasu smirked, “You mean like-“

The brunette didn’t even think before landing a swift kick at his shin.

He winced slightly before giving her a pout, “I got it, I got it.”

Naru looked up at them from his book. “If you want to eat before we leave I suggest you start now” he warned, “I want to leave in an hour.”

As if they had just heard a bomb explode everyone but Mai began scrambling to leave the room, obviously wanting nothing more than to eat before they suffered the long drive back.

Sighing at them, Mai shook her head. _‘They’ll never change’_ she thought.

Naru raised an eye at the brunette. “You aren’t going to eat?” he inquired.

Mai sighed, “I couldn’t even if I wanted to. These injuries are making my stomach all weird. I’ll eat later… probably.”

Over by the monitors Lin frowned at the new information at the same time as Naru.

“Shouldn’t you ask Miss Matsuzaki if this is normal?”

Mai glanced over at the elder man. “No need” she insisted, “I get injured enough, this is normal.”

Her temporary boss didn’t seem too happy with her reply. “Are you a doctor?” he asked.

Mai shook her head.

“Do you have a degree stating that you completed the college courses to become a nurse or a paramedic?” he continued.

“Of course not…” she trailed off wondering where he was going with this.

Naru smirked, “Then how are you supposed to know whether or not this queasy state is normal, a side-effect or if it’s something serious.”

The petite girl opened her mouth to speak but was cut off, “Imagine how much trouble it would cause if it turned out you actually have a serious infection or perhaps internal bleeding. How much do you think everyone will worry?” he continued.

Naturally Mai could already feel the guilt building up. “I-I” she stammered and Naru knew he had won, not that he had ever doubted himself.

From over in his seat Lin mentally rolled his eyes at their interactions. They were so childish, that certainly hadn’t changed over the year they’d been gone.

“I guess we’re going to the dining room then.”

Mai looked over at him. “But-“

He cut her off, “Not buts, I thought you were the one always bugging Naru to be more professional in his work and not to complain about things that could create problems.”

Crossing her arms, she glared at the two males who had clearly ruined all of her ways to get out of the check-up. Of course she knew they were right but that didn’t make her feel any better. In fact she would have preferred if they had just dragged her there or something.

As if reading her mind Naru gave her a cold glare. “I will drag you” he warned.

Mai gulped and was out of her seat in a second, moving towards the door while grumbling incoherently.

Rolling their eyes, they followed the reluctant girl out of them room and down the halls to where loud shouting was coming from, mainly Ayako.

“Who are you calling old you geezer!?” she screeched.

Mai winced at the piercing sound adding headache to her list of current pain. “You sound like a banshee,” she muttered as she walked into the room.

The red head whipped around to look at her. “What was that Mai?” She hissed narrowing her eyes.

Ignoring her, the brunette walked over to the kitchen area and poured herself a glass of room temperature water. Taking a long sip she sighed at the curious gazes of her “family”.

“Don’t look at me like that. I’m in a bad mood now. Stupid stomach, if I could settle it enough for me to eat then maybe I wouldn’t be here right now.”

Masako scoffed, “Over dramatic as always. Stop being so cranky about everything. We haven’t even done anything yet. My guess is you were told to get a check-up because of stomach sickness.”

Lin looked over at the medium. “Does this happen often?” he inquired.

Nodding Ayako sighed, “Yeah. Sometimes Mai overuses her powers and afterwards she feels sick because of low sugar and sodium levels. She has some medication to take but if I had to guess I’d say she forgot it,” she explained.

Naru nodded in understanding. “Then shouldn’t she be trying to eat something sweet or something with a lot of salt?”

From across the table Bou-san made a sound of agreement. “Most likely. Problem is she won’t eat anything. That’s why she’s supposed to have her pills at all times.”

The brunette huffed. “I’m still here. Stop talking about me like I’m not in the same room.”

Turning to her, Naru gave her a blank look. “Why won’t you eat anything? You need to get your sugar and sodium levels back up.”

Looking away Mai rolled her eyes at the undermining order, “If I try to eat anything it’ll make it worse. I need lots of water and my pill. If I try to take anything else it could have negative effects on my body. The sudden rise in sugar and salt will shock my system. The pill I take is designed to release it slowly and build my levels up over the day. I’ll be fine until we get back.”

Her assurances only seemed to make everyone at the table more irritated however and she found herself the point of many glares.

Groaning she managed a tight pained smile. “Did I mention the fact that I also can’t take pain medication for 24 hours so it would be much appreciated if we didn’t argue on this subject?”

“You can’t take pain medication?”

Mai looked over at John with a raised eyebrow, “You didn’t know? I thought everyone knew that. Last time I took pain medication after using a lot of my powers I ended up passing out and nearly went into a coma. Something to do with the chemicals in it contradicting the levels of energy currently running through my body.” She explained waving it off.

Sighing in annoyance, Naru rubbed his temples. “Fine. Time’s up we’re leaving now anyway.”

Quickly everyone stood up and began to grab plates and clean up from breakfast. As soon as they were done they all packed into the vehicles and started on the ride back to Naru’s.

**Me: So what’d you guys think**

**Mai: Please read and review**

**John: *Appears* Shellsan doesn’t own ghost hunt**

**Me: Thanks John. Oh yeah! After next week I will be on holidays so you guys can look forward to more updates over the period of 7 weeks.**

**Mai: Shellsan plans on doing something for Christmas this year too ^_^**

**Me: So don’t forget to read and review and I will see you next chapter**


	13. Chapter 13

**Shellsan: So I’m back… finally**

**Mai: You should give up on common updates**

**Naru: She’s just too lazy**

**Shellsan: *pouts* I’m trying! I had to go away and then school was really busy and then that stupid cyclone…**

**Naru: Excuses**

**Shellsan: I’m sorry! At least I’ve got this done though ne?**

**Mai: *agrees* We hope you enjoy!**

At first Mai didn’t mind that she was stuck with Lin and Naru. In fact she was enjoying the abnormal and most definitely short lived peace that she was getting. But when the ride reached just over an hour she found herself getting increasingly bored.

Looking around the van she tried to find something to entertain her before she went insane from boredom. Spotting Lin’s shiki she grinned slightly and began making small movements with her hands to try and get Min’s attention. Instead all she got was a glare from Lin telling her not to distract his shiki and to stop being so irritating.

Pouting she leaned back again her chair carefully so that she didn’t hinder her injuries. She was quite used to pain at this point but she could still feel a dull ache in her limbs and the burning of her back. It wasn’t all too strong but it was still enough to keep her from falling asleep.

“Naaaaaruuuuu.” She whined. When he ignored her she turned to Lin. “Lin. Naru won’t speak to me.” She complained.

It was childish, she knew that before she even said it but she couldn’t help but feel as though this could quell her boredom.

The response she got from Lin was a roll of the eyes and another warning look. Crossing her arms she began to kick at the back of Naru’s seat.

From where he was sitting Naru was finding it increasingly difficult to merely ignore the presence of his ex-assistant. But he didn’t want to encourage her either. Sighing quietly he tried to focus on his book in the hopes that she would stop.

It became clear that this wasn’t an option as she began to increase the force that she was kicking the chair with. Honestly it was becoming more then a little irritating.

“What do you want Mai.” He snapped finally.

Grinning in victory Mai made a mental note of how long Naru lasted and filed it away for later dwellings. “I’m bored. Entertain me.” She demanded.

The narcissist’s fingers moved to the bridge of his nose purely out of habit and he began to rub at it to stave off the oncoming headache. “With what Mai? Read a book or something.” He suggested.

Eyes lighting up, she sat up a little straighter. “Do you have any other books in the van?” She asked excitedly. Despite the fact that she had tones of books at home on various parts of parapsychology she was interested in finding out more and no doubt the best way to do that would be to read some of Naru’s books.

With a roll of his eyes, Naru reached into the side of the van and pulled out a couple different books. With a quick glance at the titles he handed the one with the words “Appearances can be deceiving.” It was about the different ways spirits could conceal themselves and their intentions.

As soon as Mai opened the book she was engrossed in the pages leaving both Lin and Naru to sigh in relief. Neither were sure they could handle Mai much longer in her current mood.

Even after she was caught up in the book however, it seemed as though the ride would last forever. The silence had begun to bug Mai again and she was muttering things under her breath. Luckily, it wasn’t long after that the huge gates that signaled the Davis’ Mansion.

Snapping her book closed she held it out to Naru. Glancing back at her he smirked. “Keep it for now and finish it. Maybe you’ll actually learn something.”

She tried to be angry at him for the comment but she couldn’t help the smile tugging at her lips. “Stupid narcissist.” She grumbled half-heartedly, a feeling of warmth spreading through her chest. As much as she hated to admit it – despite all this time her irritable feelings hadn’t wavered all that much. There was a short period of time when she fell for another guy but that was another story entirely. As soon as Naru had gotten back the feelings she had thought had disappeared appeared once more. If she were honest with herself this made her mad. Why did she have to still cling to the one guy who had turned her down?

Naru ignored her – and the knowing look he was being given from Lin – with ease.

As soon as the van was parked, Mai opened the door and grinned as she stretched. “Ah.” She sighed happily as her muscles shifted back into place, a couple cracking.

Rolling his eyes, her ex-boss was already at the top of the stairs. “Are you going to stand there all day?” He demanded, motioning for her to follow him.

Lin was already way ahead of them, holding the door open as he waited for the two of them to follow. Nodding at Naru she walked up the stairs, still amazed at how big his place was. “I still don’t understand why you need such a large house.” She muttered. It was almost definite that she’d get lost in there at one point or another.

Seemingly thinking the same thing Naru sighed. “Just try not to stray from anywhere you already know how to reach. I don’t need to spend all day trying to find you.” He dismissed.

Narrowing her eyes at him she huffed. “I’ll try not to get lost and make your days worse.”

Walking up to him she stopped and waited for him and Lin too show her where she was going to. Before Naru could tell her what was happening now though Mai turned to see blonde hair before Naru was being pulled into a hug with Luella.

Smiling a little at them, Mai could feel a pang of sadness. She could faintly remember the feel of a loving mother’s embrace. But it had still been a long time.

With little effort Naru weave out of his mother’s arms, a scowl set on his face. “Mother, what did you need?” He asked with an irritated look. He loved his mother but sometimes she was just too much to handle.

Blinking a little she let out a little “Oh”.

With a grin she turned to Mai and Lin. Lin was keeping a stoic face but everyone’s favourite brunette was giggling quietly. Shooting her a glare Naru sighed. “Mother.” He reminded.

Turning to Naru she grinned. “Yes, yes. I heard you the first time Noll. Your father wants you and the team to come for tea in the lounge now that your back. Speaking of which where is everyone else? I wanted to speak with Madoka.” She rambled quickly.

It took Mai a moment to translate what she had said because the woman had been speaking much faster then she could keep up with.

“Madoka and the others will be here shortly.” Lin supplied, “They had to stop and pick up some fuel on the way here.”

Nodding a little Luella didn’t falter. “Well then you lot can come in and have some tea with Martin.”

For a moment Mai swore she saw Naru glance at her with a longing look and nearly laughed. He’d missed her tea – clearly. Of course that was to be expected when he had it every day.

When Luella began walking the petite girl didn’t even think before following her, nearly collapsing as she walked in and was flooded by the emotions. Gasping silently she tried to school her features back into their previous smile but found it harder than intended. It wasn’t that she wasn’t used to this – well to be honest she wasn’t, she could never get used to feeling the emotions of others so strongly- but the emotions within the Davis mansion were much stronger than many of the places she had entered before.

Turning to Mai, Naru gave her an indescribable look. “Are you alright?” He asked carefully. For a moment she almost thought he looked worried but that couldn’t have been it. Naru doesn’t show his emotions that easily. But she could’ve sworn…

Shaking the images from her mind she tried not to think about it too much. She couldn’t read too much into things –she’d only end up heart-broken again.

“It’s nothing.” Mai replied easily, ignoring the feeling of weight that was actually hanging upon her. She’d just have to endure it for now. Later tonight she could get away and have a break.

Following them once more she watched as they made they turned to the side, heading away from the steps in the middle of the room. As they walked down the hall to the right Mai couldn’t help but admire the artwork that was hung.

She’d never known much about art but it was clear that whoever decorated knew a thing or two. Most likely Luella she decided without another thought. The professor and Naru definitely had nothing to do with it.

Finally they entered a large well, furnished room. It was considerably different to the living room they’d relaxed in the other night. There was a large L-shaped white couch sitting close to the middle, a couple recliners and one two-person seat. In the centre was an oak wood coffee table. There was already a tray with a teapot and cups placed there with sugar and milk.

It took her a moment before she realised that Professor Davis was sitting on the two-person seat with a cup of tea and a newspaper.

“Ah, Oliver. Lin. Miss Taniyama.” He nodded at them with. Lin nodded back and took a seat in one of the recliners.

Luella took a seat next to her husband and Naru sat in the other recliner. It appeared to be one of the usual arrangements and you couldn’t help but feel a little out of place in the room. It felt off to be intruding on their space.

Noticing my discomfort a little Luella motioned towards the L-shaped couch. “Take a seat dear. Would you like some tea?” She inquired.

Mai blinked. “Oh no, I can get my own.” She insisted, trying to reach for the pot.

“Nonsense.” Luella gently pushed her hand away. “You’re a guest in this house. It’d hardly be fair to do this.”

The professor appeared to agree.

Sighing in defeat, Mai sat back into the seat. “One sugar and a little milk please.” She requested quietly.

Smiling widely the woman nodded. “Alright.”

It barely took her a moment before she was handing Mai the tea.

Thanking her, the brunette took a sip. Even she had to admit that it wasn’t quite like her own –not that it was bad. In fact it was quite good. But she’d become used to the tea’s back at her store.

Naru looked over at her with hard eyes. “I believe you owe me some explanation. We should hardly be getting back from that case so early on.”

Gulping slightly Mai, leaned forward so that she didn’t irritate the cuts on her back anymore.

“I know… I’m sorry.” She apologised, staring into her teacup with a guilty look. “I didn’t want to worry you guys but I had to do something. If I hadn’t then maybe Megan would have been injured ever worse, or dead. I couldn’t bear the thought of that happening and so I acted recklessly. I will explain everything though – I promise that what I did will have its merits.”

Martin looked over at Mai with a curious look. “What did you do?” He inquired, confused as to what was going on. He couldn’t understand what she’d done because clearly he hadn’t been there and the report wasn’t written. It was an irritating feeling to not know what had happened and from the looks this girl was being given from Lin and Noll alike it was definitely something he should be interested in.

Shaking her head, Mai smiled at him. “I’ll explain it all as soon as everyone else gets here. Yasu knows some of the stuff that’ll help make things more understandable and the others didn’t know about this particular… ability per say so I’d much rather kill two birds with one stone.” She continued nervously.

It was a risk asking Naru and Lin to wait even longer – she knew that already. But she couldn’t help but want to stall for more time – not to mention it hadn’t been a lie. The others had yet to learn of some of the things she was planning on trying out. Of course Yasu had known about it but that was another story entirely.

Naru nodded in acceptance. “Fine but we will talk about this.” He admonished.

He’d been watching her carefully even since he’d seen something happen with her earlier. There was definitely more to her powers then she was letting and he doubted she’d tell them anymore than necessary. It probably had something to do with the fact that all of her abilities seemed to be dangerous towards herself.

It was honestly very amazing that her powers escalated this much over a simple year. Which brought him to another question. How was Mai going into parapsychology for the next schooling year which would begin in a few weeks?

He was sure she’d only been a first year student when he left so that would mean she should still have another year of schooling after this one.

Mai was about to say something back to him when they heard loud talking – or rather shouting on Ayako’s part.

Naru rolled his eyes at the familiar noise of arguing in Japanese.

It was then that he realised something. Throughout the case… Ayako and Bou-san had been speaking English.

His eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he tried to figure out how. It’d been made very clear towards the beginning of their arrival that neither of them were able to communicate in English so when had that changed? It didn’t make sense for things like that to happen.

Looking over at Mai it appeared as though she knew what was going on. He couldn’t help but glare in response. He hated not understanding something.

Watching Lin, he moved to go and collect them and Madoka who had driven back out to the mansion early in the morning so that she could drive the team back. It had become obvious earlier on in the case that this would be necessary until Bou-san or one of the other adults were able to drive in England.

Ignoring these useless thought he watched in amusement as the team made their way into the room.

Looking around they quickly spotted Mai and Yasu was first to move towards her.

“Mai-chan, my love. The Monk and the Priestess have wounded me once more by flaunting their love in front of me. Oh how my heart aches.” He cried out dramatically, sitting unnecessarily close to her and leaning on her shoulder, careful of her cuts.

Mai rolled her eyes and grinned at him. “Oh Yasu. Cry your heart out on my shoulder.” She allowed him, patting his hair softly.

Bou-san looked scandalised as he watched them and quickly moved to push Yasu away from Mai and take her place.

Luella watched in amusement at the strange bunch. He’d noticed how lively they were before but she couldn’t remember them being this entertaining.

“Get your hands off of my Mai you creep.”

He demanded, smothering said brunette with a hug. Struggling slightly, Mai hit his shoulder. “I’m not your Mai, you dirty old monk! Go be touchy-feely with Ayako.” She teased.

Pouting he flushed. Before he could say anything though Ayako let out an outraged shriek, “How dare you. If you weren’t so injured I swear.” She grumbled.

Masako scoffed at them. “Do you not have any manners? I apologise Mr and Mrs Davis. They are quite rude. Please don’t take it to heart, they’ve always been animals.”

Turning her anger to the medium, the priestess ground her teeth. “What did you say, you brat.”

John stepped between them. “Now now, I think we’ve caused enough problems. Why don’t we all just sit down and relax.” He tried to break them up logically.

Sighing they nodded, unable to refuse the kind priest. “Now then. It appears as though my son has some questions.”

**Shellsan: And that’s the end of this chapter. It was more of a filler chapter then anything.**

**Mai: The people want answers!**

**Naru: if they can’t figure it out then they’re stupid.**

**Shellsan: Naru! Leave the readers alone. Some will be revealed in the next chapter. I hope you guys have enjoyed this chapter.**

**Mai: Please read and review. They make her day!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Shellsan: So here it is. The long awaited explanation**

**Naru: Don’t get too excited it’s boring and full on with the fake hypothesis’ she calls Science**

**Mai: Leave Shellsan alone! She did her best to make it plausible!**

**Shellsan: It’s alright Mai. I hope everyone enjoys it though and remember, there is no way I own ghost hunt in any shape or form**

Everyone turned to look at Martin. With a sigh Mai nodded. “I guess I should explain everything now then…”

Lin gave her a hard look. “Yes, explain _everything_.”

The underlying tone made it clear for the petite girl to know exactly what he was talking about. It was clear that she really didn’t really have much of a choice at this point.

Clearing her throat she looked around the room. “Okay… I suppose this will be easier if you guys ask me questions and I answer them the best I can.” She decided, motioning to Naru.

Nodding, he thought for a moment. “How were you inside the room?” He asked eventually.

Mai gave him wry grin, it figures Naru would ask this question first of all things.

Taking a sip of her tea she began to explain. “Ah that. It was an experiment of sorts. And before you say something about tests being dangerous and all that, this was for an ongoing theory of mine. It just so happened that I was able to test it using myself. Yasu can explain it better but basically I astral projected myself to her spirit using a complicated technique that involves following the aura of a spirit.”

She motioned towards Yasu to explain in more detail.

Nodding Yasu continued. “It’s like Mai said only a lot more complicated. In one of your published papers you mentioned that theoretically one spirit can find another spirit purely because of the difference in auras and therefore that another person could find a spirit using similar techniques.”

Looking over at Naru, he waited for confirmation.

Confused, Naru nodded. “Yes but I also stated that this was purely theoretical and would take many years of training to accomplish due to the difference in aura’s between a human spirit and that of the dead.” He recalled easily.

He furrowed his brows in concentration as he tried to figure out where they were going with this. The others were nearly as confused – if not more so -, unsure as to where this was going.

“Right, well Mai theorised that if she were to astral project then it would be easier for her to reach out towards other spirits aura’s since she’d be on the same plane of existence at the current time and in turn be able to take her spirit form to where that other spirit was without knowing where they actually are.”

Everyone looked over at him then at Mai and then back at Yasu once more. “So you’re saying that you devised this theory?” He asked slowly, looking over at Mai.

The brunette flushed slightly under his gaze. “Well yeah…”

Martin sat shocked for a moment before he broke out of his stupor. “This sounds an awful lot like an entrance paper I marked for the next school year…” He commented suspiciously.

Grinning, Yasu looked over at Mai proudly. “That’s because it was Mai who wrote it. I haven’t introduced myself fully yet. I’m Osamu Yasuhara, previously a researcher and occasional helper on SPR cases and one of your future students for the year – on scholarship no less.”

Gesturing to Mai, he continued. “This would be Mai Taniyama, you female scholarship student, and ex-assistant to Oliver at SPR. Pleased to meet you professor.”

He was mindful to hold his hand out and not bow and to keep the order of names, first and then second because that was the culture.

His eyes widened slightly and Martin took a moment to overcome his shock for the second time that day.

Luella laughed a little in delight. “So you two are the ones Martin couldn’t stop talking about that would be attending his classes this year. What a coincidence. I’m very sorry for his forgetful mind, it’s a pleasure to meet you once more.” She cut in, motioning for her husband to shake Yasu hand.

Almost automatically, he reached over and shook Yasu’s hand. “Well then I look forward to working with you – both of you- throughout your future years.” Mai was given a pointed look and she couldn’t help but smile at him for it.

Naru was still a little shocked, along with Madoka and Lin about the new revelation. They’d known about the two of them studying but the scholarships and the fact that they were in _Martins_ class remained to be a surprise.

“I wasn’t aware that the class you were taking for parapsychology was Martin’s.” Lin stated.

Mai and Yasu shrugged, “Neither did we until about a week ago when the professor lists were sent out.” Yasu replied with a mischievous grin, “I was hoping to surprise Naru over here, figured we’d run into you eventually.” He pointed out.

Madoka’s own smile widened. “I see, I see.” She agreed.

Rolling her eyes, Mai turned back to Naru. “You had more questions didn’t you?”

Naru nodded, “Explain to me how those two,” He gestured over at Ayako and Bou-san,” Spoke English whilst we were on the case.”

Said Monk and Priestess turned to Mai after it was explained to them what happened thanks to John’s translations.

 **“Wait we were? I was sure we were speaking Japanese…”** Bou-san muttered in confusion.

A second later there was a loud smack as he was hit on the head. **“You stupid monk! Obviously Mai was translating us!”** She grumbled.

Bou-san nearly whined but quickly decided against it when he was given a glare from his fiancé.

Blinking a little, Naru turned to Mai. “You were the reason they could speak English?” He asked, once more confused – speaking in English for his father’s benefit.

The brunette looked at him sheepishly. “I was trying out another theory…” She trailed off.

Next her Yasu seemed to get excited. “Oh yeah! Wait-“He turned to Mai quickly. “You tested them at the same time? How come I didn’t notice?” He appeared to be more concerned with his lack of observational skills then the fact that she’d used so much of her psychic abilities.

Naru however was cursing the fact that he hadn’t realised it earlier – but more so because of his firsthand experience on how she must feel right now.

Coughing slightly, Martin gave her a curious look. “So how exactly did you give them the ability to understand and speak English?” He asked.

Before Mai could tell him however, Yasu jumped in. “It’s an advanced level of Telepathy which stems off of her aura reading abilities. Basically, after a particularly rough case, Mai found that she could understand and speak what things in other languages said _provided_ that she had contact with someone else who knew that language in the general vicinity. I came up with the theory that she could use it to translate Basic English to Japanese for them without them knowing it. Of course, it wasn’t fool proof and there were probably moments when Mai had to change things but we can talk about that later.” He explained, voice speaking almost impossibly fast.

After a polite translation from John, Ayako rolled her eyes. **“This is great and all but if you don’t mind, I think I’ve had enough of being a test subject. I need to learn English on my own now for business purposes and so does this goof.”**

Mai grinned at that, ignoring the loud shouts of Bou-san about her being rude and an old hag **. “You won’t really need to. Have you tried to read or speak English instead of Japanese yet?”**

Ayako was confused but shook her head so that Mai was aware of this knowledge. **“Basically you should be able to speak English due to the words and translations still being in your immediate brain. Speak it enough and you can become fluent.”**

Lin watched her carefully. “Are you saying that you are able to speak other languages after having this ability used on you?”

Shocked by the sudden voice opinions from the usually silent man it took her a moment to comprehend the question. “Ah, Uh. Well sort of. Some of them like Spanish, I sort of just forgot but I know Chinese, English, and French fluently because of Cases with foreigners. The rest of them I never really cared to practice…” She trailed off slightly, a little embarrassed at how much attention had been on her.

She didn’t enjoy being the centre of attention all that much and preferred it when everyone else was being scrutinised.

“I see…” Naru muttered thoughtfully. Her explanations hadn’t been the best but he’d been able to put the information together easily enough and he was sure that Lin and his father had been able to the same just as well.

Mai fidgeted again for a moment before looking over at Lin. “Do you wish to ask your question after Naru’s gone through all of his? It’s not going to be a pleasant topic.” She asked.

He appeared to think about it for a moment before nodding finally. “It would be best to get the discussion done beforehand so that everyone is made aware. But ii think to delay the inevitable until after Naru has sated his need for answers would be for the best.”

Arguing would surely have been futile by the tone of his voice, not that she wished to argue anyway. It was quite the logical decision.

Turning back to Naru, she gave him all of her attention, ignoring the curious looks she’d gotten once more. She could think about how irritated they were going to be _after_ she survived all of these explanations and the lectures that are long time coming.

“How are you in college this year? If my calculations are correct – which they are - then you shouldn’t have graduated yet.”

That was an odd question to ask and for some reason it made the brunette swell with pride. “I graduate officially in around five days. Just another reason as to my reluctance to come to England so early on. The plans to arrive soon were talked about but I still need to complete my graduation. I skipped ahead in most of my classes after you left. I had a lot of free time so I worked hard and got as close as I could to completing school and began to manage that between running the shop. I started the shop up around six months ago which was around the time when Yasu struck a deal with my principle. He claimed that he could get me to a graduate level in school within six months. If he could do that than they were to let me graduate that year so that we could go to university together. That’s pretty much the story.”

It had been a lot of work to get to where she was not but so far it had all been worth it. There were of course a few details she had _forgotten_ to mention but they were hardly important.

Slowly Naru absorbed the information and placed it to the back off his mind for later reference. It could become helpful later on.

“If I may Miss Taniyama. What exactly are the extent of your abilities, in full? Please don’t leave any details out.” Martin requested.

Mai nodded in understanding. “Well you’ve already heard about my dreams and astral projection. I’ve explained how that works. To my knowledge I don’t possess any PK abilities however I can sense auras and as you’ve no doubt figured out, find people and sometimes object using these abilities. There’s also my strong instincts due to my latent ESP. The whole ‘seeing shiki’ thing is hard to explain so I’ll just leave it at my ability to see and communicate with them for now. I’ve not really had the chance to elaborate on it all too much since Naru and Lin left not too long after. I don’t think I left anything out…” She trailed off thoughtfully.

Yasu thought for a moment before he nodded. “That pretty much covers everything. Does anyone have any more questions for Mai?” He asked curiously.

A loud cough from Lin had Mai huffing. “You want me to explain the whole ‘Gene’ fiasco right?” She sighed.

He nodded in agreement. “That would be helpful yet. I’ll find out one way or another and so will they so you might as well explain it to them now.” He pointed out.

Of course Mai could see the logic but it was a touchy subject and she hardly felt as though she should be intruding upon it. But since Lin had brought it up none too careful she was getting wide-eyes looks from Martin and Luella. Naru was glaring slightly. What did he think she’d done now?

“Um well there’s no easy way to explain this but Gene is still here…”

There was a silence before Naru spoke. “What do you mean ‘Gene is still here’. We laid him to rest and he should have passed on.” His voice was cold and Mai flinched slightly but stood her ground.

“I’ve been wondering myself. Back at the Baker’s you stated that the afterlife works in ways that we can’t even begin to comprehend. What did you mean?” Lin’s contribution had the spotlight back on Mai and she curse him for putting her and the Davis’ through this.

Gulping Mai looked down. “I’m not quite sure how to explain this. Gene still lingers, more as a guide for me than anything. Although sometimes he’s just around.” She began.

Before she could continue Naru cut her off. “He needs to pass on. What if he becomes like the spirits we cleanse and exorcise. That idiot.” He ranted angrily.

It was obvious how this was making him feel and Mai wanted nothing more than to wrap her arms around him and comfort him. But knowing that wasn’t an option she decided to do the next best thing. At least until she had a moment alone with him. There were so many things she wanted him to know but she couldn’t. Not until ‘that day’ finally came. Until then it wasn’t an option.

Clearing her throat she made Naru aware of them fact that he was ranting with everyone around – not that his attitude was something he cared about right now, least of all his reputation.

“Actually he can’t.” Naru looked like he was going to interrupt her again but Mai held her hand up.

“Let her speak Noll.” Luella whispered. She needed to know what the brunette was talking about. Was her other baby safe or not?

With a deep breath Mai began to explain once more. “As I was saying Gene can’t go rogue. While it’s true he’s still on the spiritual plane it’s a lot more complex than that. Imagine a room with three doors and a window that opens on both sides. On one side the spirits enter and on the other side spirits leave. Normally there is a constant flow for every spirit. They enter the room and a door opens. One represents hell, one heaven and one re-incarnation. The spirits we exorcise are those who’ve attempted to pass into the one of the windows and have their fate decided but the doors have shut on them as they have unfinished business. They are then sent back into our plane of existence as spirits. When Gene tried to pass on I was there, guiding him towards what people refer to as a ‘light’ but is simply one side of the window. Normally the doors and windows close and leave only a single door or window for one to pass through. As I watched something abnormal happened. Instead of closing and leaving one open, all of the doors and windows closed, locking him inside. He can’t leave. In other words Gene hasn’t trapped himself, the spiritual plane has.”

When Mai finished her explanation everyone was silent. It seemed that Ayako and Bou-san were finally picking up on the English as they concentrated and were just as shocked as everyone to hear so much information on the spiritual plane.

For some reason though, Masako looked horrified, quickly bringing her kimono up to her face to hide her expression. There were many things she’d learned as a medium and at the very top of her list was that everything in this world there is a price. For information such as this… just what price had Mai paid?

Luella had begun to cry at Mai explanation and the brunette was quickly becoming uncomfortable. “I’ll leave you alone for the time being to wrap your head around things.” She decided. The others took the hint and stood up.

Lin looked reluctant to leave but Mai knew that it wasn’t there place to stay, no matter how close he was to the family. “Come on Lin. I’m sure you’ve got a long lecture all planned out for me.” She muttered with a wry grin.

Sighing, he took the hint and stood up. “Since you appear so ego. I’m sure Noll will be more than happy to have his turn later on.”

When it seemed like he would argue, Mai walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder and leaned down to whisper into his ear.

“I know it’s not my place but your family needs you right now. You have a family to look after you. Let go for a change. They love you no matter how you are, take advantage of it. You aren’t alone.”

The words were soft but they hit the narcissist hard and he looked up at her with the most vulnerable eyes she’d ever seen him give her. “Later. Will you tell me more later?” He mumbled.

Giving a final nod Mai smiled at him. “We can talk about whatever you want later. Go to your family.”

With that, she left the room with Lin in tow. Despite her teasing tone from earlier he appeared to be fully ready to give her the exact lecture he’d thought up.

_‘Well what was I expecting? This is Lin after all.’_

**Shellsan: And so that’s it!**

**Mai: Wha-!? You just gave the readers more questions!**

**Naru: Told you it sucked**

**Shellsan: I’m sorry! I didn’t intend for things to go like that but it just kind of derailed and decided to go in that direction… *sighs* Please read and review anyways?**


	15. Chapter 15

**Shellsan: Hey guys! Here is the next chapter of TCOL!**

**Mai: Remember, Shellsan doesn’t own ghost hunt**

**Shellsan: Sorry this took so long. No matter how much I tried to type it up it just wasn’t working. But in the end this is what I have ^_^ Enjoy!**

It had been two hours since Mai and the others had left the Davis’ to talk about their deceased son and grieve over the fact that he was trapped here and in those two hours Lin had not let Mai so much as get a word in. Somehow – in a way that was almost amazing if it weren’t so irritating – the Chinese man had managed to plan out a two hour long lecture just for her.

This was a fact that scared her.

But what she found even more frightening, was the fact that Lin probably would have continued if it weren’t for Naru entering the room at that moment.

“So this is where you escaped to. Where are Miss Matsuzaki, John, Takigawa, Miss Hara and Yasuhara?” He inquired, walking into the study type room.

Lin regarded him with a look that showed hidden worry for the young man. “Miss Matsuzaki and Takigawa decided to go sight-seeing, I believe that Miss Hara and John were doing the same thing off on their own.” He explained.

Naru nodded. “And Yasuhara? He’s hardly the one that I want poking around on his own. I don’t want to discover what type of mischief he could get up to.” He commented dryly.

“You wound me.” A voice called from the entrance to the room.

Mai stood up and gave Yasu a surprised look. “I thought you were working on some changes to my information?”

Looking over at her, he grinned. “But my dear, I hardly wish to leave you all alone with these two scary men.” He joked.

Puffing her cheeks out, Mai huffed. “Too late for that. You left me alone with Lin for two hours and now my ears are about to bleed, so do pray tell – what the difference is when you add another to the equation. Somehow I doubt you’re here for such a menial reason.” She scoffed with a slight pout.

In truth, she really did wish that he was going to whisk her away from her current predicament. Naru being there did make a difference as opposed to when it was just Lin and her. A big one. Because now she had to hear the lecture that Naru had come up with all over again, repeating all of Lin’s previous words and probably adding some issues that the elder had neglected to add.

Yasu gave her an apologetic look. “I’m sorry Mai, but now I’m leaving you alone with Naru. Sadly the one I’m seeking out currently, is Lin. I’d like some help with something and I think he may be the best person for the job.” He explained before giving her an overly obvious wink. “Have fun with Naru! ~” He called as he quickly left the room to avoid anything Mai might attempt to do to him, fully expecting Lin to follow. Which he did of course, but not before throwing a slight smirk towards Naru – who naturally glared at him.

As the door clicked shut behind the other man, Mai turned around and busied herself with the tray placed on the desk of the room which was laid out with various tea-making necessities – purely the basics such as tea bags and the like.

For a moment the entire room was silent and neither of the spoke. The quiet was nerve racking and definitely not pleasant, the tension in the air being dense enough to cut.

After a few minutes, Mai turned around to face Naru, who was sitting in one of the smaller couches placed in the room and handed him a cup of earl grey. “Here.” She muttered.

Gently, Naru took the cup from her and indulged himself in a much needed long sip.

Even though it wasn’t anything like the blends Mai made herself, or any of her normal tea’s made with the leaves and strained, somehow the brunette still managed to make it taste better than anyone else’s.

His muscles relaxed slightly as he felt some of the tension built up from the past few hours leave his body.

“How’s the professor and Mrs Davis?” Mai asked quietly, finally breaking the almost constant silence.

It took a moment for Naru to process the sudden word before he answered. “She’s much better than earlier. Most of it was shock more than anything. She’s worried about everything but she’s happy that he’s safe for the time being. Father is still with her and she should be fine. As for my father, I think it’s more stress then anything. Even though you’ve insisted that Gene can’t become an evil spirit, he’s still worried and wants him to be able to pass on.”

The brunette regarded him with a guilty look. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have told you. You’ve just started to heal and then I forced this extra weight upon you. I-“She began to apologise.

“You have nothing to be sorry for.” Naru cut her off with a stern look. It seemed almost un-characteristic the way he was acting right now but then again – he had learnt more than his fair share of information to do with the paranormal –or more specifically the paranormal rules surrounding his brother - today.

She looked at him in surprise. “But-“She started again only to receive a glare in response.

“Don’t make me repeat myself, Mai. I would be angry if you _hadn’t_ informed me of this fact. It was something we deserved to know, regardless of the effects.”

His tone was meant to reassure her and make her stop feeling guilty but it had the opposite effect.

The brunette’s head tilted down and she felt tears gather in her eyes. He was acting so brave but she only had to look back at the expression he’d had earlier to determine exactly how he was feeling then and is likely still feeling – even if it had mellowed a little bit. He was in pain, he was suffering, and he was _wilting_. And it was her fault. She should have known better than to answer a question such as that so openly. She should have made it so that they weren’t made aware of the full extent of what was happening.

There were many things that she’d done that she wished she hadn’t. Enough to make her wish that she could regret the decisions. But regrets are like grudges – life is much too short to hold onto them. She casts them away, cleansing herself of such unnecessary emotions.

As Mai sunk deeper and deeper into her thoughts of the subject, Naru eyed her carefully – intentionally. He hadn’t seen Mai in such a long time and he’d barely had the time to notice the changes and similarities. Her hair was only slightly longer, her eyes still held the same warmth and comfort that had loosened his clients up so much. But there were more noticeable changes to her as well. She’d grown smarter, in more ways than one. Her eyes now spoke of more wisdom and less innocence. Her actions portrayed more motive then feelings in some minor cases, or rather she’s simply controlling them better. And finally the way she acts suggests that she’d learnt more than just a language or two from the growth in her powers. The lengths that they’d extended in such a short period of time, it’s something that not even he is able to comprehend. Not even her ever constant family was aware of many by the sounds of earlier. So how is it, that something this big was kept secret? Just what secrets are being hidden now?

Naru lifted his cup of tea to his lips and took one last sip, emptying the contents. Clearing his throat, Mai snapped out of her thoughts quickly and turned her attention towards him.

“Now that we’ve established that fact, I’d like to know more about Gene’s visits and how often it happens. When was the last time you and he spoke? Does he always help with you when it comes to dreams anymore?” He questioned carefully.

The brunette watched Naru for a moment and contemplated on what to say. Taking a deep breath, she crossed her legs and made herself comfortable. As long as they were on this subject, Naru wasn’t lecturing her. But grilling her for information wasn’t much better – or so she supposed.

“I haven’t seen Gene in a while. The first and last time I saw him was around three months after you left. At the time I was still wrapping my head around things. I haven’t seen him much since so I can’t tell you much about whether he’s in all my dreams – seeing as he hasn’t been around enough for me to speculate. He hasn’t been in any of them since you left though for the most part. He’s probably avoiding me.” She informed him, offering an unamused grin.

At that, Naru raised an eyebrow. “Why would he be avoiding you?”

Letting out a slight laugh, Mai tried to look serious. “I really should feel more regretful for my actions but I don’t… I slapped him. And screamed at him. But to be fair, it was his fault.” She accused.

He watched her for a moment with an amused look. “I would prefer it if you’d refrain from beating my brother up next time you see him. Why did you hit him?” He needed to understand why exactly she had done what she claims to have. Perhaps it was out of fear of Gene once again being a substitute for something he did. If Mai had hit him purely because his brother looked like himself then that was something that he couldn’t condone.

Mai looked at him with a serious look. “Because he’s a jerk. He didn’t tell me that he wasn’t you and instead chose to deceive me. I was angry and emotional. Looking back now, I probably would’ve slapped you as well if given the chance.” Her features morphed into a sheepish grin.

The look she got in return said that he didn’t believe she could hurt a fly – a fact that was in many ways true. “You couldn’t have hurt me. My face is too precious.”

She felt the irritating urge to slap that look off of his face right now but at the same time, Mai found herself being relieved. This was more like the Naru she knew. Vulnerability wasn’t something that she saw much of when it came to Naru and it wasn’t something she wished to see more of.

It was silent once more throughout the room and Mai tried to think of something else to talk about.

“Your powers have grown a lot.” Naru commented out of the blue.

Stunned, Mai looked at him with a tilted head. “And?” She asked cautiously.

The teen was silent again for a minute before speaking. “Powers come at a cost. My PK can kill me without Gene here. What was your cost? How did you acquire these powers?” He asked carefully.

Gulping, the brunette tried to think of a way to explain it without actually telling him anything, wracking her brains for anything to help her out of this situation. ‘ _He can’t find out yet. It’s not time.’_ She thought.

“I was trained by a monk for a little while. After you left I was a little upset and everyone thought that taking me with them to expel a spirit would make me feel better. But without Gene there to guide me, I kept having constant nightmares, realistic dreams of what had happened to the people who had been injured and killed in the house we were in. Things were going out of control and after the case was solved, Bou-san introduced me to his grandfather. It was three months of isolation and hard training before I could sleep safely again.” She explained.

Naru nodded slightly in acceptance, slightly guilty that he wasn’t there. It didn’t take a genius to know that it was his fault for the dramatic increase in her powers. Emotional stress and trauma were often linked to cases of poltergeist activity and Mai had already shown signs of powerful spiritual abilities.

As if sensing his thoughts, Mai reached a hand out and grabbed his clenched fist.

He looked down in surprise but didn’t remove her hand from his, much to Mai’s pleasure.

It’s not as if it were a bad feeling per say, which was odd to him because he’d never enjoyed physical contact, merely tolerated it.

Smiling at him, Mai squeezed his hand firmly before pulling away at the last second when the door opened.

Luella stood there and looked at them suspiciously. “What were you two doing?” She asked, eager for some gossip. It looked as if they’d been holding hands but as much as she wished it were true, chances were that wasn’t the case. Noll didn’t like to be touched.

“Nothing mother, what is it?” Naru asked, acting as if he weren’t slightly miffed at the interruption.

The woman stared blankly at them for a moment before her eyes lit up. “Oh yes. Sorry. I was going to tell you that lunch was ready.” She explained, “And also that your friends were back from looking around. Everyone’s in the dining room already.”

Standing up, Mai brushed herself off slightly and walked over to where Luella was standing, turning to Naru with a grin, waiting for him to do the same.

With a sigh, he gave the two overly enthusiastic girls an irritated look. “I’m not hungry.” He brushed them off, ignoring the exasperated look that his mother was giving and walking over to one of the bookshelves in the room instead. Truthfully he just didn’t want to sit through a lunch that noisy right now.

Luella opened her mouth to comment on his lack of eating but before she could Mai was marching over to where Naru was and grabbing his arm.

His eyes snapped down to the brunettes, causing her to close hers on instinct. If she looked into Naru’s eyes then she’d lose her nerve, stupid jerk.

“You have to eat.” Mai decided firmly, turning away from him so that she could open her eyes and tugging a little on his arm in an attempt to drag him towards the door.

Naru didn’t budge at all as she tried and instead mentally rolled his eyes at her. “I don’t _have_ to do anything.” He scoffed with an annoyed tone.

Pouting slightly, the brunette pulled harder on his arm, succeeding in unbalancing him enough to drag him a couple steps. “Yes you do. If you don’t eat then you’ll get sick or pass out or something else that’s stupid.”

Luella tried not to laugh at Mai as she watched the scene before her in amusement. It was odd to see such a small girl ignoring Naru’s glare and his personal space while telling him off, especially when Noll was so much taller that her.

“It’s alright, Mai. It’s not unusual for Oliver to miss lunch.” She tried to appease the girl.

Almost immediately Mai snapped her head to look at Luella. “I see.”

For a moment it seemed as if Mai had finally given up but instead she turned around, letting go of Naru’s arm and crossed her arms. “You skip meals that often?” She asked.

Naru shot his mother a glare at the lack of help that he’d been given before turning his narrowed eyes to Mai’s. “Why’s that a problem? What I do is none of your concern.”

Thinking about it for a second, Mai smiled brightly. “But it is my concern. Which is why you’re going to sit down and eat something. Or do you want to upset me and have everyone mad at you?” She asked mischievously.

Smirking, Naru raised an eyebrow. “I don’t care what they do.” He pointed out.

Mai stamped her foot in irritation. “Fine then. I’m not eating unless you do.” She decided, walking over to a seat and sitting down with a pout.

Oliver sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Go eat idiot.” He ordered.

Looking away, the brunette said nothing in reply, much to Luella’s amusement. “If you two decide to join us, then you know where we are.” She stated, turning around and walking out of the door, closing it behind her.

As soon as it was shut completely, Naru walked over to Mai, standing in her vision. “Stop being stupid. Go eat.”

Mai avoided looking at him. “Only if you come eat too.” She insisted.

Naru sighed at her proclamation. It was clear that she wasn’t joking which made him feel slightly guilty. If there were two things he knew Mai loved to do it was eat and sleep so she was definitely hungry.

It was silent in the room once again before Naru mentally groaned. She’d gotten to him.

“Come on, idiot.” He stated.

The brunette’s head snapped up to look at him happily. “You’ll come eat?” She asked.

“I’ll walk with you to the dining room.”

Her eyes narrowed. “I’m not going unless you plan to eat something.” She repeated.

Naru gritted his teeth in exasperation. “Fine. I’ll have something small to eat.” He allowed.

Standing up, the petite girl smiled again and walked over to the door.

“Now that wasn’t so hard, was it?” She mocked, opening the door and turning to walk down the hallway.

Following her, Naru turned in the opposite direction. “Wrong way idiot.”

Puffing out her cheeks, Mai quickly turned around and caught up to Naru. “Well, so-rry.” She grumbled, her voice going high pitched when she nearly fell, not paying attention to the stairs.

Reaching out on instinct, Naru grabbed Mai’s hand and pulled her back up to balance before she could fall too far ahead.

“Dummy. Pay attention to where you’re walking.” Naru teased, hiding how worried he actually was. If it was this dangerous just for her to walk and talk then how was she even alive right now. It was a scary thought and it made him squeeze Mai’s hand tightly to make sure that she wasn’t going to disappear.

Blushing bright red, Mai huffed but didn’t let go of his hand, squeezing back slightly. “Jerk.”

**Shellsan: So that’s the next chapter. I was trying to add in some Mai x Naru moments for you guys while accomplishing what I wanted in this chapter. What did you guys think?**

**Naru: It sucked. You made everyone wait this long for something like this?**

**Shellsan: *pouts* Well I’m sorry if you don’t like it.**

**Mai: *Sweat drop* Please read and review**


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shellsan: Soooo here’s an update finally. I’m doing 7 days of updates for the New Year and while I intended for this to be longer, I’ve run out of time for January 1st. Please enjoy.
> 
> Counter: Day 1
> 
> [Please forgive this fool. I posted this everywhere but AO3 by the correct date...]

 

Ignoring the comment, Naru began walking downstairs again, dragging Mai along with him.

Wobbling slightly at the sudden movement, the brunette struggled to keep her balance as she was dragged along. “O-oi Naru! Slow down or I’m going to fall again.” She accused.

He barely glanced back to check on Mai as he continued at the same pace he was already going at, causing Mai to squeak when they came to a sudden stop at the bottom of the steps and he let go of her wrist.

The warmth he had offered her was immediately missed. Despite this however, she tried to act like nothing had happened. She had promised herself before they left that she wouldn’t get caught up in him again. This was just business. She’d only be with Naru temporarily and then she’d be starting school. Yasu and she already had their sleeping arrangements sorted out as part of the scholarship program.

Getting lost in her thoughts about her future of being a real student in parapsychology, she didn’t notice the looks that Naru was giving her from beside her.

It was an odd feeling, being forced to eat lunch again. It’d been such a long time but it felt like just yesterday that he was being told that Mai had made something for himself and Lin to eat when she got back from work. Mai had always been like that, making him do things that he never used to do. Not even Gene used to make him eat lunch on a regular basis.

But somehow this single brunette had managed to turn his life upside down in just a short amount of time.

Snapping out of his thoughts, he came to a stop in front of another set of French door. “Mai.” He called out suddenly, immediately forcing her back into the land of the living with his serious tone.

“What is it Naru?” She asked, tilting her head in confusion. Had she done something wrong again?

The genius hesitated for a moment before steeling himself. “I know he’s going to be your professor, but try not to tell him too much about your abilities.” He warned her.

Before she could ask questions about any of his proclamation, he swung the doors open and walked into the room, leaving a confused brunette behind, until he turned around and smirked at her.

“You going to stand there all day or are you too busy admiring me?” He teased.

Despite his words though, he hoped that at the very least she would remember his words through her anger. It wouldn’t do for anyone else to hear about the things that she can do. It wasn’t safe – even in the Davis’ mansion. He knew that there was more to everything that she’d told them but he couldn’t –wouldn’t- ask any more while they were where prying ears could learn about the full extent of her current abilities.

Glaring at him, she refused to answer him, instead grinning at the occupants in the room.

“Mai! So you decided to join us after all.” Luella joked, winking at her.

The brunette promptly flushed at her comment, remembering that the elder woman had been in the room when she had told Naru off.

“Come, sit down.” She insisted, motioning for her to take a seat in the chairs across from her and Madoka.

Mai was a little wary as she moved to take a seat with everyone else. For a moment it seemed like Naru was going to bail but a look from the brunette had him sitting down next to her.

Almost immediately, he was given looks from most of the table. Luella and Madoka were giggling like children and from the head of the table you could see Martin looking confused but otherwise pleased with the situation.

“Mai, it’s wonderful you decided to join us for lunch. There were so many things that I wanted to discuss with you.” He proclaimed. It was odd to see the elder man so excited and it caused Mai to flush in embarrassment.

Before she could reply to his comment, Luella cut in from across from her. “Remember the rules, dear. No work talk at the table.” She requested. Even if her tone was polite, Mai could easily tell that it wasn’t her asking, she was making sure they understood how things worked.

It looked like her husband would argue for a moment before he sighed and nodded. “Of course. We’ll continue this conversation later.” He offered.

Unable to say anything against the suggestion, she chose to nod instead.

Happy with how things had turned out, Luella smiled at them all. “Help yourselves. There’s plenty of food to choose from.” Her hand gestured to the table in front of them to prove her point. Many foods covered it and Mai couldn’t help but feel a little excited. Being an orphan living alone and working to make a living from a young age meant that she didn’t often get to eat something as amazing as how the food on the table looked.

Sensing her hesitation, Naru made a show of grabbing a sandwich from the table. The genius swore that he wasn’t doing it for anyone else but that he was just hungry.

Even so, Mai took the hint and began grabbing a little of everything from the table, eager to try the new food.

Madoka giggled, watching the two of them carefully and nudging Luella and Yasu sitting on either side of her and nodding her head towards where Naru was keeping an eye on Mai out of the corner of his eye while nibbling on the ham and cheese sandwich in his hand.

Yasu smirked. “Well since we can’t talk business, how about we just talk. I’m curious to see what _Big Boss_ has been doing after he left.”

Grinning, Madoka shot Naru a sly look. “From what I remember he spent the entire time sulking after he got back.” She teased thoughtfully. “He barely left his office and he didn’t take many cases at all.”

Bou-san chuckled. “I can imagine why. I really am the best man to be around to lighten up the fun.” He proclaimed proudly causing Ayako to turn her head to the side, scoffing.

Turning his head to look at her, the monk tried to look as though he was offended but it looked more like he was expecting that reaction. Before he could say anymore Yasu cut him off.

“Don’t insult my dearest. How can I ever expect him to lighten my mood on the darkest of days if you put out the flame that lights his entire being like the warm sun on a cold winter’s day?” He announced, his arms spread dramatically as he looked pointedly at Takigawa, facial features giving nothing away.

Sitting next to the Monk meant that Naru was very close to the man when he decided to hide away from the declarations of the other. He winced when they decided to have an all-out ‘lovers quarrel’ sighing in relief when Ayako took it upon herself to hit her fiancé on the head and kick Yasu under the table extremely hard.

With those two quietened down – if only temporary – the sound of laughter rang clear around the room, Mai beaming at her family. It was… nice, being back with the whole gang. When Naru had decided to leave it had been like they were ripping apart the family she’d worked so hard to rebuild over the time they spent together. It was a horrible experience that she never wanted to repeat.

Noticing her expression going a little sombre from where he was discreetly watching Mai to make sure that she did in fact eat, he couldn’t help but wonder what could be causing her to react like that. What was the brunette girl thinking of that had her so solemn.

He could almost hear Gene in the background asking him why he cared.

A long time ago, he would have asked himself the same question. But he was past the point of denial. To say that he _cared_ for Mai Taniyama would be an understatement but it was as far as he was willing to allow her into his life at this stage – if he had really had a choice in the first place.

The way that everything seemed to be falling into place for their group of oddities was almost like someone was pulling the strings behind the scenes.

Shaking away his thoughts, the teen finished what he was eating and began to stand up just as Lin did, ever the silent one. They shared a look of understanding before they were heading towards the door – neither wanting to get caught up in anymore of the shenanigans of their old co-workers.

Looking up at the other boys, Martin also took this as his chance to get out of the lunch. “I’m afraid I have something to speak with you two. Can you spare a moment?” He inquired, directing his question at Lin and Naru.

Nodding their consent, the two waited for a moment for Martin to kiss his wife on the cheek to appease her obvious distaste at him leaving so early into lunch, before they all headed out.

From where they were still seated at the table, Yasu couldn’t help but smirk at the disappearing backs.

“I wonder what _important_ and _manly_ things those three are going to discuss…” He joked thoughtfully. “

John chuckled quietly. “Now now, don’t make fun of them for wanting to talk business.” The priest tried to insist.

Madoka couldn’t help but scoff. “I’m sure that there are plenty of important things those three have to talk about. But nothing stressing enough that they’d skip the better half of lunch. They’re definitely running away.” She disagreed with a smile.

Sighing, Mai finished off the last of her food and grinned sweetly at Luella. “I’m sorry to be a bother but can you direct me to the kitchen?” She requested politely.

Luella looked across at her, a little surprised. “There’s no need for that dear. If you need something one of the maids would be happy to grab you it.” She informed the brunette.

Still smiling, the petite girl shook her head. “No, no. That’s quite alright.” She disagreed immediately. There was no way she could let a maid do something that she was perfectly capable to doing herself. Not to mention it was doubtful that a maid could pull off what she wanted to.

Seeing Mai’s hesitation, Madoka quickly tried to soothe Mai’s worries. “The maids are here to help. You really don’t have to do anything that isn’t necessary.” She tried to convince her. If there was one thing that the she had learnt over the period of time she had known the brunette it was that she was stubborn. Stubborn, to a point where she took everything upon herself. The pink haired woman just wanted to see her relax.

Masako seemed to have the same idea. “Why don’t you just enjoy the beauty treatment while it’s available to you? It’s not like you’ll ever get the chance again.” The medium sneered slightly in an attempt to agitate the girl enough for her to forget about going to the kitchen.

Sadly Mai was determined to complete what she needed to get done and refused to let the doll like girls words bother her.

“Please. I promise I won’t ruin anything.”

Still a little against the idea, Luella went to object again but Yasu cut in. “If you don’t mind my saying so, I really would appreciate it if you could allow us the use of your kitchen. There are a few tests I was eager to attempt before we left Japan for England that I’ve yet to have the chance to try out. We’ll clean up any mess we make and we’ll try not to break anything.” He swore.

Noticing that this was a losing battle, Luella finally agreed. “Alright. If you go out that door over there and walk to the end of the hallway, on the right is the kitchen.” She directed, motioning to a singular oak door that was in the corner of the room that Mai hadn’t noticed earlier.

Bowing gratefully before she could stop herself, the brunette was already out of the room before anyone could ask her what she was going to be doing in the kitchen. Especially since Yasu wasn’t with her at the time so she couldn’t be working on an experiment – could she?

Ayako gave Yasu and confused look. “What was that all about?” She demanded. What was going on that Mai hadn’t told her about?

Shrugging, Yasu turned back to the food on his plate. “Don’t worry about it.”

Bou-san didn’t look too convinced but he let it go anyways.


	17. Chapter 17

**Shellsan: So I didn’t manage to make it a weekly or even fortnightly update schedule but at the very least this update is less than a month after the previous one…**

**Naru: Stop procrastinating and actually get things done!**

**Shellsan: I’m sorry! But anime is distracting and there are some amazing fanfiction out there that happen to be crazy long and I get caught up T_T I will try harder!!!**

**Mai: Shellsan owns nothing…**

Mai sighed as she made her way to the kitchen, following the directions she’d been given by Luella. She didn’t have much time. First she’d scope out what the Davis’ had available to use before she went back to grab the rest of the things she would need. It would take a little bit of work but she was sure she could pull off her plan with Yasu’s help just fine.

Although she felt a little bad for everyone else. She’d basically sold their souls without their knowing. Not that they would realise if she didn’t tell them until a later time, but she did plan to make it known to them before that so that if they had any qualms they could take them out on Yasu instead of her. They may be partners in crime but sometimes you just had to know when to quit.

Chuckling slightly to herself, she pushed open the large wooden door and found herself unable to hold back a squeal at the size of the kitchen. It was every bakers dream!

Doing a little spin, she double checked that no-one was around before she began to ruffle through the cupboards, careful not to disturb anything too much. She found a few tea pots in the larger size and a collection of smaller ones. They looked precious so she’d have to be extremely careful if she ended up using them when the experiment was finally over. But for now, she opted to stay away from them.

Finding some plastic bowls she decided that they were definitely the better option.

She also found a tea strainer and some jars of various tea leaves, however they weren’t in the best condition.

The brunette sighed. It was clear that as far as tea leaves and the other ingredients she needed, she’d have to go out and buy them. Maybe Yasu could come shopping with her under the guise of sightseeing or shopping... It wouldn’t be too difficult as long as no-one else tried to tag along.

Deciding that was the best way to go about things, Mai resolved to grab Yasu now before anything else had time to happen.

Wandering back the way she came, it occurred to her that they might be somewhere else already at this point.

With a sigh, Mai closed her eyes and concentrated. She wasn’t quite back up to full strength since the stunt she pulled while they were on the case, but there was enough spiritual energy left inside her to easily locate them and draw up a mental map.

Following it, she found herself in front of another set of large French doors, wandering how they could stand for every room to look the same.

Quietly, she opened the door, not surprised to find that everyone, including Naru, Lin and Martin were inside. I had felt more than enough auras to have realised how many people were inside the room before I even got there.

“Mai!” Luella exclaimed happily, grinning at me. “Please, join us. We were just discussing some of the hauntings that have been investigated at BSPR.” She waved Mai over.

Naru had looked up the moment that she had entered the room. He hadn’t meant to, but it was likely that it was Mai and he was wary as to where she had disappeared to. The others hadn’t mentioned it but they obviously knew. Yasuhara didn’t seem to think that she was in any danger and he wanted to trust his judgement. But Mai seemed to be able to attract danger in the most unlikely of situations and he couldn’t help but be a little cautious knowing this fact.

However, as all the occupants in the room could tell, Mai was fine, if acting a little strange.

Smiling, the brunette bit her lip. “I’d love to Mrs Davis, but I actually wanted to borrow Yasu for the afternoon…” She trailed off with a sheepish look.

It was clear that the Brunette was trying not to seem rude, but she also looked anxious.

From next to Madoka, Yasu, grinned. “Ahhh, my lovely princess has come to take her prince away. Shall we ride into the sunset at a pace slower than Masako running?” He dramatized, grinning at the snickers he received from Ayako, Bou-san and Mai.

The rest of the people in the room seemed confused – namely Lin, Madoka, Naru, Martin and Luella. However Madoka seemed to catch on quick, giggling along with them after a moment.

Getting over the laughter, Mai rolled her eyes at her best friend. “Hardly, we’ll be back long by then I should hope. Or at least we will be if you hurry up.” She complains.

Bou-san pouted. “But Jou-chan! Don’t you want to wander London with your favourite father?” He whined, stopping Yasu from walking over to where Mai was standing.

Turning around, the black haired man looked up at Bou-san with glint in his eyes. “Oh my love! I know, it breaks my heart to walk away from you too. But there is no need for jealousy. You and I can go on a date in the park before you return back to Japan.” He proclaimed, before smirking and lowering his voice. “And if you wanted to jump me, then you could have done it earlier when I was alone. I hardly thought you were _that_ type of person.”

He of course meant to disrespect towards anyone who enjoyed that sort of thing, however the reaction he got from the monk was absolutely worth it.

Releasing Yasu, he jumped back to put some distance between them almost immediately. He wasn’t sure what the hell that stupid kid was thinking, saying something so wrong in front of his innocent Mai, but he wasn’t about to stand there and let him attack his pride – not that he had any left with the looks he was getting out of amusement.

Before anyone could say anything else, Luella gave Mai a worried look. “Would you like a lift into town? We’re further out and it’s around a thirty to forty minutes away by foot…” She trailed off.

Mai grinned at Yasu, and he turned to Luella with a big smile. “Don’t worry about it. Walking will do us some good. Besides, I’m sure we can make it there in twenty-five minutes.”

Rolling her eyes, the brunette gave her friend a challenging look. “I bet I can make it in twenty.”

Martin raised a brow at the two but before he could comment on their unusual rivalry, they were already waving goodbye and out of the door before anyone could stop them and slow down their progress further.

Lin tried to look impartial from his spot between Noll and Martin, but he couldn’t help but voice his thoughts. “Do they even know where they’re going?”

At this question, Ayako scoffed. “They’ll probably walk in a direction that Mai’s instincts say to and hope that they’ll arrive where they’re supposed.”

John chuckled at little sheepishly at her tone as Luella looked even more worried about them. “That doesn’t sound very trustworthy… Should I go after them? They can’t be too far by now…” The elder lady was worried about those two. Mai was a sweet girl. She didn’t want anything to happen to her – not that she wasn’t worried about the boy as well.

Rolling his eyes at them, Bou-san shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. Those two would pretty far along by now, with their speed. And Mai’s instincts might now seem like much to you but they’ve never failed her yet. Think of it as training her abilities so that there will never be any doubt about what she says when she has a feeling. Those two will be back in no time.” He assured them all.

After how long they’ve worked with Mai, even Masako had to admit that Mai’s instincts have never been off the mark.

Even so, Luella still seemed worried. “I’m afraid it still worries me… surely it would have been better to give them a lift. And with how they both are, surely if something were too happen they wouldn’t be able to deal with it… They can’t be too far along. It’d still be better for me to send someone to give them a lift. It’s not like it’d cause any trouble…” She tried to insist.

Luella couldn’t help but think that Mai looked so innocent and small that if anything were to happen, she might get hurt. And after everything that Madoka had told her about the brunette she seemed to attract more danger then bugs to light.

Apparently she wasn’t the only one that was concerned. Martin gave a nod at her suggestion. “If anything were to happen while they are in our care it definitely wouldn’t be good.” He agreed.

With the way they were talking, Naru couldn’t help but think it sounded like Mai and Yasu were walking into the middle of a war unarmed.

Masako seemed to agree. “Mr and Mrs Davis, please understand that we wouldn’t have let them go if we thought anything dangerous would happen. Yasu and Mai are both stronger than they look. And with the time you were ignoring our statements about how much they’ll be okay, they’ve probably already made it into town.”

Madoka furrowed her brows, looking at the time. “It’s only been around twenty minutes. It’s not likely.” She wouldn’t say it was impossible because she was a ghost hunter – everything was possible. But it certainly wasn’t probable.

This time Ayako grinned proudly. “I’ll have you know that Mai was a track runner in middle school. One of the best.”

Bou-san smirked. “You only found out recently when we turned down some offers from various schools. Even some in America.” He pointed out, only to be hit into silence a second later.

Now it was really Naru’s turn to be surprised. He had known Mai was fast. After the amount of times she’d outrun them while going head first into danger it was hardly a surprise. But hearing someone say that she was good enough that she was being scouted made him remember that Mai hadn’t always had abilities beyond normal capabilities. If it weren’t for him she might’ve had a chance at a job that wasn’t as dangerous. It made him feel a little guilty.

Sensing his thoughts, Bou-san added. “I told her to choose whatever made her feel the happiest. She decided that she’d rather ghost hunt than run track. Said that they were both as dangerous as each other. Apparently the reason why she wasn’t doing track in high school was because she had a bad fall and broke her leg towards the end of middle school.”

This made Naru mentally cringe, along with everyone else in the room. It would seem that Mai could get into trouble without there even being a major risk.

Sighing in resignation, Luella nodded. “If they aren’t back within the next hour and a half then I’m going looking for them though.” She declared.

No-one argued further on the subject.

**~WiThMaI~**

As Mai ran against Yasu, she was clearly wining. Her chest was heaving evenly as she ran at the pace she knew she could last at evenly for the full twenty minutes. Yasu had ran a little harder at first and had to slow down later on because he was running low on breath. He was no amateur but he wasn’t as good as the girl who made top three in the nationals.

Arriving at where her instincts were directing her, Mai slowed to a stop and clicked her watch, happy to see that it read twenty minutes and thirty six seconds.

Yasu caught up with her a minute later, panting. “We should find somewhere to sit down for a couple minutes.” He suggested, with a tired smile.

Giggling, Mai agreed, already walking towards the nearby bench outside a park.

Collapsing into their seats, both of them relaxed, soaking up the scenery. They hadn’t had time to look at it earlier but now that they were properly observing everything, the fact that they were no longer in Japan was beginning to sink in properly.

Looking at her, Yasu asked the question he’d wanted to find out about before they left. “Do you even have money? I assume we’re out to buy some stuff to complete the experiment.”

Mai huffed. “I have money. I was prepared. But yeah. We have to stop by the stores and I need to see if I can find a tea shop...” She sighed. The chances were slim but if she had more tea leaves to work with then things might work out better. She has some, but it’s not enough.

Nodding, Yasu looked thoughtful. “Well, let’s go through the grocery stores and then we’ll find the tea shop.” He decided, always the planner of the two.

Mai grinned. “Ready to move?”

The other looked affronted. “Never.” He groaned, but got up anyway, pull Mai up after.

**~TiMeSkIpU~**

The two sighed as they walked around town. Mai was about to give up on finding a tea store when she felt a twinge in her stomach, telling her that she shouldn’t. Biting a lip, the brunette glanced around, hoping that if her instincts were right, she could catch sight of something.

Yasu seemed to notice and kept quiet, taking the bags Mai was holding silently so that she could focus completely on her thoughts.

Closing her eyes, she focused on finding the link. It took a few minutes but when she snapped her eyes open once more and swung around, she immediately began walking towards a small alleyway and turning.

Jogging to catch up, Yasu was careful of the bags as he tried to match Mai’s pace.

They continued like that for around five minutes before she stopped out the front of a small dark looking store.

It was creepy but Mai’s instincts said that there was nothing that could harm her inside so she swallowed before pushing the door open.

Despite the looks from outside, the inside was actually very cosy. Dark wood for every surface but there was a nice chandelier hanging from the ceiling and multiple shelves with varieties of plants.

Yasu shivered a little. “Is this a witch’s haven?” He asked quietly, a little freaked out but otherwise his normal self.

Shrugging, Mai observed the shelves before walking up to the counter and ringing the bell to signal her arrival.

An elderly lady appeared not moments later and smiled warmly at Mai.

“Hello there dearie. I didn’t expect many customers today. Are you after something specific?” She inquired, motioning to the wide variety she had on display.

As Mai and the lady went into detail about what teas she was after, Yasu continued to look around the room. It honestly didn’t seem like a place anyone would willingly go to without a purpose. However the lady running seemed kind enough.

There were many different herbs, flowers and other plants hanging on the walls, some that he recognised and others he didn’t have a clue about.

One thing was for sure, this woman knew her fair share about the paranormal. He recognised the markings of some charms hidden around the room.

“-su, Yasu!” Mai exclaimed, trying to get her friends attention.

Turning around, Yasu grinned as he forced himself to snap out of his thoughts. It wouldn’t do to be distracted.

“Sorry. You ready to go?”

The brunette nodded, holding up the paper bag.

Waving goodbye, Mai followed Yasu as they exited the store.

“What was that about?” The brunette asked once they were out of earshot.

Yasu shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. It’s nothing.” He insisted.

With a sigh, Mai didn’t pry further.

**Shellsan: And there we have it.**

**Naru: I thought it was going to be longer**

**Shellsan: So did I… I’m not as happy with this chapter as I could be but I’m happy with it enough. And 2635 words isn’t too bad… I’m going to try and work towards Mai starting school up with Yasu soon ^_^ The next chapter is already underway since I did have more on the end of this one but it seemed better to stop it there.**

**Mai: Shellsan still doesn’t own ghost hunt.**


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